
Class L 

Book i 

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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 

ITS FUNCTION 

ORGANIZATION AND 

ADMINISTRATION 



BY 

JOHN ELBERT STOUT 

PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION 
CORNELL COLLEGE, IOWA 

WITH INTRODUCTION 

BY 
LOTUS D. COFFMAN, Ph.D. 

PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION 
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 



D. C. HEATH & CO., PUBLISHERS 



BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO 









Copyright, 19 14, 
By D. C. Heath & Co. 

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NOV 25 I9K 

©CI.A388724 



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PREFACE 

The American high school has in a new sense become the 
school of all the people. It is here that a constantly increas- 
ing proportion of our young people receive their final train- 
ing for the social duties and opportunities that await them. 
In order to meet the demands made upon it, the high school 
is under the necessity of redefining its aims. This requires 
a careful examination of the means employed — curriculum, 
organization, and teaching. Reorganization is demanded 
and it should result in both progress and stability. Tradi- 
tions should not be allowed to stand in the way of necessary 
readjustments, nor should the glamour of things new lead us 
to engage in hasty and ill-advised experiments. 

This volume is an attempt to state the principles that 
should guide in the process of reorganization. The author 
has felt the need of some such treatment during several 
years of service as high school teacher and principal. More 
immediately the work is the outgrowth of courses in school 
administration given for prospective high school teachers. 
It is intended primarily for the use of students of education 
in normal schools and colleges, and for teachers and princi- 
pals of limited experience. It is hoped that it may possess 
some value also for all high school workers who feel the need 
of reorganization in high school education. 

Part I deals with the function of the high school. Means 
cannot be intelligently chosen or wisely used in the absence 
of clearly defined aims that will actually serve as guides in 
practice. In the belief that generalized aims do not serve 
as useful guides in the daily work of the school, the several 
points of view from which the education of youth should be 
regarded have been emphasized and discussed in detail. 



vi PREFACE 

The work of the secondary school has been viewed heretofore 
quite exclusively from the standpoint of intellectual develop- 
ment. Physical needs, employment of leisure time, work 
interests, social adjustments, all need to be taken into ac- 
count in any discussion of the education of youth. These 
various viewpoints have been given rather full treatment 
in order to make clear the true function of the high school. 
Throughout Part I the social needs and interests of youth 
have been stressed. 

The needs and interests of girls have not received at the 
hands of the school the discriminative attention they de- 
serve. Secondary schools, so long exclusively boys' schools, 
have not until very recently made any readjustments to 
meet the requirements of girls. In view of this, a chapter 
has been given to the discussion of the education of girls. 

Part II is devoted to questions of organization and admin- 
istration. In the discussion of the intellectual organization, 
the high school curriculum is examined from the standpoint 
of its historical development, and the influences responsible 
for the present status are pointed out. The value of a 
curriculum, however, cannot be judged alone by the sub- 
jects it contains. The actual subject matter used and its 
organization for teaching purposes are the important things 
to be considered, hence they have received the emphasis of 
attention. 

The method employed in the treatment of this topic is to 
point out and discuss the criteria, both psychological and 
social, that should be employed in selecting and organizing 
material. This is followed by a detailed discussion of the 
subject matter of each field. The social studies, science, 
and English have been treated more fully than the other 
fields because of the conviction that these should contribute 
the chief means of secondary education. 

Scarcely second in importance to proper selection of 
subject matter is the organization of it into a workable 



PREFACE vii 

whole. Many high school curriculums lack such organiza- 
tion and unity. The concluding chapter in this section is 
devoted to a discussion of the organization of the curricu- 
lum. The small high school receives special consideration. 

The social organization of the high school is viewed from 
the standpoint of its three-fold relation — to the curriculum, 
to training in social efficiency, and to school government. 
The class-room group is regarded as the center around which 
the social life of the school should be organized. The social 
character of the school is made prominent and means are 
suggested for its organization in such a way that it may serve 
its purpose in the socializing process. 

I am under special obligations to my wife, Grace Farwell 
Stout, for valuable assistance in the preparation of the book. 
Her assistance both in the plan and in matters of detailed 
treatment has made publication possible. 

J. E. S. 

Mount Veenon, Iowa, 
October, 1914. 



CONTENTS 

Editor's Introduction xxi 

INTRODUCTION 

Chapter I — Changing Social and Educational 
Conditions i 

Growing interest in secondary education — Growth of 
the high school — General causes of growth — Demand for 
readjustments — Attempt of the school to minister to 
all classes — Girls constitute majority enrolled — Changes 
in school largely in externals — Changes outside the school 

— Changes in industry — Problems of human welfare arising 

— Attention being given to these problems — New civic 
conditions — Changes in the home — New relationships in the 
home — ; The child and the home — Importance of changes 
outside the school — Social changes as related to the work 
of the school — General causes for failure to make read- 
justments — Unprecedented interest in education — Too 
much emphasis on the articulation of the work of the schools 

— Resulting in neglect of those who drop out of school — 
This class of students require more attention — Failure 
now more generally recognized — Influence of intelligent 
interest on the part of the people — Education being denned 
in terms of social efficiency — Restatement of aim and re- 
organization of means demanded. 

PART I 

THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 
Chapter II — Factors Determining Function ... 14 

New factors determining function — Large proportion 
of students drop out of school — This fact calls for read- 
justments — Community demands upon the school becom- 



x CONTENTS 

ing specific — Nature of these demands — Demands aris- 
ing out of increased appreciation of — The educational 
significance of adolescence — Multiplicity of demands give 
rise to conflicting interests — Criterion for determining the 
legitimacy of a demand upon the school — Aim cannot be 
stated in old terminology — Aim defined in terms of social 
efficiency — Necessity for an analysis of the term — Points 
of view from which to regard the work of the school — Physi- 
cal needs must be taken into account — Necessity for train- 
ing in leisure occupation — Vocational needs and interests 
considered — Training in civic efficiency demanded — Func- 
tion of preparing for higher institutions — Peculiar needs 
and interests of girls demand consideration — Statement 
of aim must include these points of view. 

Chapter III — The Physical Aspects of Educa- 
tion 23 

Education has had too narrow meaning — Significance 
of the physical aspects — The school must educate for 
health — Large responsibility resting upon the high school — 
Two examples cited — The "white plague" — The social 
evil — Solution to be found in right type of education — 
The importance of intelligence in matters of sex functions — 
Significance of normal physical development — Not only 
health but physical efficiency — Habits of right living 
and motor control — Practical difficulties to be recognized 
and overcome. 

Chapter IV — Demands for Vocational Training 
and Guidance 31 

Majority enter gainful occupations on or before completing 
high school — Pupils leave school because of vocational in- 
terests — These interests largely instinctive — School should 
render them intelligent — Objections to vocational education 
considered — High school not to specialize but should de- 
velop and refine vocational interests — Preparation for 
gaining a living a vital matter — Importance of right atti- 
tude toward work — Interest of parents in vocational 
guidance — Two reasons for vocational guidance in the 
high school — Points of contact between home and school — 
Social significance of vocational education — A means of pro- 



CONTENTS xi 

tection to society — A means of constructive social en- 
deavor — Value of intelligent choice of occupation — The 
high school as an agency for vocational education — Special 
types of schools — An administrative problem — Pedagog- 
ical considerations — Various needs of pupils must be taken 
into account — Unfortunate results of class segregation — A 
final objection to special types of schools. 

Chapter V — Preparation for Leisure Occupa- 
tion 44 

Problem of rightly employing leisure time — More en- 
lightened view concerning play activities — Mutual relation 
of work and play — The larger significance of play — The 
adolescent and leisure occupation — Old modes of leisure 
occupation discredited — Demand for guidance in leisure 
occupation — Situation gives rise to an educational prob- 
lem — Negative attitude of the school — This must give 
way to a constructive policy — Interests of the community 
considered — Present means for guidance inadequate — 
Futility of voluntary organizations — The school the only 
efficient agency — The problem in the light of future social 
demands — Efforts to secure to workers more leisure time 
and its significance — Relation of leisure occupation to 
social progress. 

Chapter VI — Institutional and Other Types of 
Social Efficiency 55 

Modes of social expression other than vocational — Ado- 
lescent social interests — Efficiency for participation in 
community life — Importance of ability to cooperate in 
social endeavor — Home does not provide adequate social 
environment — Preparation for civic efficiency — Increasing 
importance of governmental functions — Demand for new 
civic spirit and new social means — Relation of government 
to a social democracy — New meaning of popular govern- 
ment — Problem arising out of separation of church and 
school — Religion a social asset — Education must take this 
fact into account — Problems arising out of the decline of the 
economic importance of the home — Results of the school 
taking over functions previously performed by the home — 



xii CONTENTS 

The problem of the home a social problem — Miscellaneous 
social activities — The significance of the passing of pioneer 
conditions — Social forces more and more the product of the 
school. 



Chapter VTI — Preparation for College 60 

Demands for higher education — Function of the high 
school in this relation — Mutual interests of lower and 
higher schools — Lack of coordination in work of lower and 
higher institutions — Difficulties in the high school — In 
the college — Difficulties augmented by failure of higher 
institutions to make readjustments — Fitness for college 
includes more than mere intellectual ability — Social read- 
justments demanded — College has different methods of 
supervision — Students find habits acquired in high school 
inadequate — Closer cooperation of two types of schools 
needed — Readjustments called for on the part of the high 
school — On the part of the college — Radical difference in 
social life of the two institutions — Responsibility of the 
high school — The college also has its task — The question 
of morals in college lif e — The demand of the college for 
physical efficiency — Guidance in the selection of a college 
course — Necessity for modification in scholastic require- 
ments — College must cease to judge high school by single 
standard — Demand for larger recognition of common 
interests. 



Chapter VIII — The Education of Girls 78 

The high school must more fully meet the needs of girls — 
Reasons for neglect in the education of girls — View taken 
of the education of women — Application of previous dis- 
cussion — Interests and mental attitude of girls — Physical 
needs — Education and health — The problem a difficult 
one — Two means at the command of the school — Educa- 
tion and home keeping — New social demands upon women 
— Social participation and personal development — Train- 
ing for civic efficiency — Training for organized social 
effort — The school should be positive in its influence — 
The duty of the high school — Readjustments demanded. 



CONTENTS xiii 

PART II 

ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE HIGH 
SCHOOL 

A. The Intellectual Organization 
Chapter IX — The Curriculum 88 



Curriculum chief means at the command of the school — 
Present neglect of this means — Causes of neglect — Im- 
portance of selection and organization of material — The 
problem one of reconstruction — Demand for proper criteria 
in revaluations — Accounting for subject-matter now in 
use — Traditional influences — Influence of teachers — 
Teachers in higher institutions have exerted the major in- 
fluence — Qualifications of teachers in this relation — Char- 
acter and influence of social demands — Social demands not 
merely social sanction — Present curriculums regarded from 
the standpoints of subjects and subject-matter — Relative 
not absolute values must be considered — Introduction of 
new subjects has resulted in confusion — A curriculum judged 
by its required subjects — Also by its electives — Value of a 
subject determined by its position in the course of study — 
A curriculum judged by actual subject-matter used — Tests 
applied to subjects and subject-matter. 



Chapter X — Selection and Organization of 
Material 102 

Changes needed in subject-matter — Educational practice 
in the high school has not kept pace with theory — Impor- 
tance of emphasis on the personal factor — Interests of ado- 
lescents chiefly social — Importance of social stimuli — 
Social demands should not be allowed to interfere with the 
chief duty of the school — Social demands furnish specific 
criteria for selection of material — Different social demands 
in different communities — Work in the St. Louis schools 
as example — Subject-matter to be selected for its content 
value — Material must be organized for teaching purposes 
— Mind of the learner should determine type of organiza- 



xiv CONTENTS 

tion — Some traditional subjects suffer from lack of proper 
organization — New subjects not free from same objection. 

Chapter XI —The Social Studies m 

Value of the social studies — Unfortunate selections of 
material — Reasons for this — Too much emphasis on 
political history — Chief interests of historical peoples re- 
quire more attention — Vocational interests and activities 

— Artistic appreciation and achievements — Educational 
systems furnish valuable material — Subject-matter must 
all be within the range of interests and capacities of learners 

— Civics and economics viewpoints from which to select 
material — Economics should deal with present problems — 
Problems of most immediate concern should be selected — 
Practical character of civics — Functions of government 
should receive emphasis — Importance of local government 

— Too much attention has been given to governmental 
machinery — Facts regarding local government — Instruc- 
tion should be concrete and practical — Importance of study 
of current events — Social studies furnish standpoint for 
selecting material in other fields. 



Chapter XII — Material Science 125 

Importance of knowledge of science — Unsatisfactory 
results in science teaching — Reasons for unsatisfactory 
results — Unfortunate influence of the "disciplinary" con- 
ception — Influence of scientists has been detrimental — 
Science material should not be regarded from the stand- 
point of the specialist — Needs of learner determine char- 
acter of material and organization — Science instruction 
should increase power in control — Material should be chosen 
for its content value — Practical values should receive em- 
phasis — Instruction should furnish motive for learning — 
Knowledge of environment — Science instruction and vo- 
cational interests — Preparation for vocational activities — 
Science instruction and right attitudes — Development of 
social perceptions — Scientific spirit is the social spirit — 
Need of emphasis on the practical — Material needs re- 
organization — Importance of proper organization. 



CONTENTS xv 

Chapter XIII — English 141 

Place of English in the curriculum — Given an important 
place only recently — Influence of "formal discipline" — 
Influence of higher institutions — Result of this influence — 
Results in instruction unsatisfactory — Two aspects of the 
subject, form and content — English instruction should fur- 
nish proper social environment — Emphasis upon content 
rather than upon form value — Interests and capacities of 
students as related to material used — Content must include 
more than mere literary content — Importance of use of 
current literature — Pupils should be encouraged to read 
widely — One aim of teaching to inculcate habit of reading 
— English instruction should prepare for leisure occupation 
Correct forms of expressions to be emphasized — School 
must furnish motives for correct forms of expression — 
Training in expression should be related to present needs — 
Oral composition should receive more attention — In- 
struction in composition should be practical — Importance 
of dramatic representation — Wide reading increases power 
of expression — Necessity for correlation of English and 
other work of the school. 



Chapter XIV — Foreign Languages and Mathe- 
matics 158 

Foreign Languages. — Important place occupied by for- 
eign language — Less emphasis now being placed upon the 
subject — " Disciplinary" influence particularly strong — 
Other reasons than "disciplinary" must control — Increas- 
ing importance of modern language — German predomi- 
nates — Values largely linguistic — Chief aim of instruction 
to give reading knowledge — Practical considerations in- 
volved — Relations which foreign language bears to our 
language — Greek has never had an important place — 
" Disciplinary " and " cultural" values of Latin — Limitations 
upon the study of Latin in the high school — Contribution 
made by Latin to our language — A question of economy 
in learning — Limitations upon any foreign language — 
Value of foreign language after leaving school — The use 
of translations. 



xvi CONTENTS 

Mathematics. — Mathematics an educational inheritance 
— "Disciplinary" values — Content values — The place of 
arithmetic — Unsatisfactory status of algebra — Geometry 
deserves relatively larger place — Mathematics to receive 
less attention. 



Chapter XV — Household Arts, Manual Arts, 
Commercial Subjects, and Agriculture 173 

Household Art. — Instruction has been too narrow — 
Favorable conditions necessary to success — Aim of in- 
struction to develop proper attitude toward the home — 
Material to be selected from various fields. 

The Manual Arts. — Emphasis on the manual side — Move- 
ment originated in private schools — Rapid development 
accounts in part for failure — Opposition to the work — 
Later emphasis upon educative values — The larger values 
— Two chief aims should control — Correlation with other 
work of the school needed. 

Commercial Subjects. — Commercial subjects regarded 
with disfavor — Instruction in private schools — Instruc- 
tion limited in the high school — Aims in bookkeeping have 
not secured results — Lack of proper aims in general — 
Two aims should govern in the work — Selection and organi- 
zation of material — The work in commercial high schools. 

Agriculture. — Furnishes useful point of view for selection 
of material from various fields — Educative values — Social 
demands — Social significance of agriculture — Dangers to 
the success of the movement — Conditions of experimental 
stage prevail — Emphasis on the practical. 



Chapter XVI — Music and Art; Moral and 
Ethical Instruction i< 

Music and Art. — Sources of material to develop aesthetic 
appreciation — Two reasons for failure to give music its 
proper place — Two aims in instruction — Instrumental 
music in the home — Vocal music in the school — Means 
of instruction in Art — Household art center for organiza- 
tion of material. 



CONTENTS xvii 

Moral and Ethical Instruction. — Aim of education ethical 
and moral — Demand for instruction — Not the name but 
the fact important — Sources of material — Social organiza- 
tion of the school an agency. 



Chapter XVII — Physical Training and Ath- 
letics 196 

The term physical training — Unfortunate beginnings; 
lack of control — Results on school work — The evils rather 
than the real problem have received attention — Steps in 
the solution — Three-fold aim — Needs and capacities of 
learners must be ascertained — Sources of material of in- 
struction — Importance of physical exercises — The place 
and function of athletics — Correlation of instruction and 



Chapter XVIII — Organization of the Curric- 
ulum 202 

Present division between grades and high school unsatis- 
factory — No such thing as ideal curriculum — Problem of 
selecting subjects and subject-matter — Many schools at- 
tempt too much — Limitation as to time — Inadequate equip- 
ment — Limitation as to teachers — Problem in small schools 
different from that in large schools — Interests of majority 
of pupils must govern — College entrance requirements not 
determining influence — Nor narrow community interests — 
Proper points of emphasis — Work of many schools not 
standardized — Courses of smaller schools should not be 
mere segments of courses of larger schools — Problem in 
larger schools one of organization — Parallel courses — 
Criticism of this plan — Required subjects and electives — 
Required subjects should possess superior educational value 
— The group system — Criteria for determining relative 
value of subjects — Most insistent needs of learner must 
govern — Required subjects determined by these needs — 
Conditions hindering the working of elective system — 
Individual differences and social demands require electives — 
Conditions under which choices should be made. 



xviii CONTENTS 

B. The Social Organization 

Chapter XIX — The Social Organization and 
the Curriculum 219 

The social character of the school — The kind of social 
structure important — The school both a social and a 
socializing institution — Proper social setting necessary — 
Problem of organization a three-fold one — Relation of 
social organization to the curriculum — Class-room group the 
primary group of the school — Importance of this fact — 
The nature of the group — Functioning of a group aim — 
Standards of a group — Leadership in the group — Interests 
and capacities of members of the group — Subject-matter 
in relation to group interests — Daily adjustments in the 
work — Preparation of the lesson on the part of the teacher 
— Conducting the recitation — Method must take group 
situations into account — A test of method — Testing re- 
sults — Individual and class instruction — Provision for 
individual interests and capacities — Relation of other 
groups to the class-room group — Need of proper social 
environment — An illustration — Principle does not apply 
in the same degree to all subjects — Segregation of pupils in 
some lines of work — Curriculum not only factor contrib- 
uting to social character of the school. 

Chapter XX — The Social Organization and 
Training for Social Efficiency 236 

Social needs of young people — Function of social organiza- 
tion — Necessity of providing for leisure occupation — Greek 
letter societies — Reasons for their persistence — Problem 
must be dealt with constructively — Positive aspects of the 
problem — The work in social centers — A proper high school 
function — Relation of the teacher to the problem — Need 
of an educational policy — School should exercise more con- 
trol over social activities — Value of concrete social rela- 
tionships — Importance of standardizing social organiza- 
tions — Standardization as to membership — Class-room 
work basis for standardization — Standardization of activi- 
ties — Importance of the functioning of a proper social 
motive — Mere machinery does not constitute social organi- 



CONTENTS xix 

zation — Class-room work basis for standardizing activities 

— Music as illustration — English and other subjects — 
The vocational subjects — Utilizing class organizations — 
Problem of direction and control — High school dramatics 

— Athletic activities — A means of standardizing these 
activities — Student leadership as a means of control — 
Functions performed by student leadership — Moral and 
ethical values. 

Chapter XXI — The Social Organization and 
School Government 255 

School government not an isolated problem — A real 
problem none the less — Necessity for proper attitude toward 
the problem — Problem arises out of relationships within 
the school — Problem a specialized one in the high school — 
Control necessary in order that work may be carried on — 
Not a police but an educational problem — Mere control 
not the only function of school government — Adolescent 
characteristics in relation to school government — Moral 
and ethical aims — Policy of government must be suitable — 
Military or autocratic form — Pupil government — Mean- 
ing of self-government in the school — Policy of government 
not its form the essential thing — Policy should enlist sym- 
pathy and cooperation — Expression of group consciousness 

— Permanent interests of pupils attach not to form of gov- 
ernment but to activities — An illustration — Meaning of 
the illustration — The spirit of government controls — 
Expression of school spirit through social organizations — 
Attitude of pupils toward teacher-made rules — The prob- 
lem of dealing with offenders — Classes of offenders — 
Psychological character of the problem — The responsibility 
must be placed on the offender — Practical workings of the 
policy. 

Chapter XXII — Material Equipment 273 

Inadequate equipment limits work of the school — True 
as regards text-books as well — New educational ideals 
must find expression in equipment — Buildings not large 
enough — Not properly planned — Much work being car- 
ried on under unfavorable conditions — Need of gymna- 
sium faculties — The school building in relation to its use as 



xx CONTENTS 

a social center — Inadequate grounds — An illustration — 
Advantages of adequate grounds — Larger use of school 
premises — The insistent need of equipment — Two general 
classes considered — Need of supplementary material — 
Two general classes of this material — Importance of se- 
lection of material — The high school library as a community 
library — Library equipment — Influence of the functional 
viewpoint. 

Chapter XXIII — High School Teachers 289 

The importance of the teacher's work — Training re- 
quired — Teaching not permanent occupation — Influence 
of preponderance of women on permanent supply — Neces- 
sary to take limitations into account — Problem to secure 
best training possible in view of limitations — Importance 
of academic preparation — Material used in high school 
instruction and its pedagogical value — Teachers required to 
teach more than one subject — Knowledge of fields outside of 
those taught — Teacher's value not measured alone by work 
of the class-room — Professional training — Elimination nec- 
essary in field of psychology — Importance of functional 
psychology — Psychology of the learning and teaching pro- 
cesses — Adolescent psychology — Application of psychology 
to educational method — Principles of education, psycho- 
logical and social — Value of the history of education in 
teacher-training — Necessity for continued professional 
study — Professional training secondary to personal* quali- 
ties — Necessary qualification determined by the nature of 
the teacher's work — Importance of right attitude toward 
the work of teaching — Attitude toward young people even 
more important — Relations which teachers sustain to the 
work of the school as a whole — Relations to the community 
— Continued professional personal growth. 

Appendix 305 

Index 319 



INTRODUCTION 

A direct result of the compulsory attendance at 
school of all children has led to an increased recogni- 
tion of individual differences and to a multitude of 
attempts to adjust educational practise to equip 
properly each individual to discharge his full obligation 
to the body politic. This movement has expressed 
itself in new types of schools, new subjects of study, 
and new forms of organization. In no field are these 
tendencies more numerous or more distinctly seen than 
in the field of secondary education. The most pro- 
nounced tendency affecting the secondary curriculum 
is the fading out of that sharp distinction between 
preparation for college and "preparation for life." A 
unanimity of opinion prevails that high-school educa- 
tion that is not good enough for college is not good 
enough for the purposes and pursuits of life; and on 
the other hand that high-school education that does 
not afford a good preparation and equipment for life, 
fails also to give a proper preparation for college. 
This doctrine calls for a constant reexamination of 
the curriculum of each of these types of schools, and 
of the forms of articulation existing between them. 
Each modification has had the reactionary effect of 
standardizing the other institution. 

The enrichment of the secondary curriculum has 
been due mainly to sanctions and pressures created 
by groups of people or classes in society not connected 
with the established school system. And the practical 



xxii INTRODUCTION 

attempts to secure a better articulation of the grammar 
and the high school and of the high school and uni- 
versity, have come from workers in the public schools, 
with the aid of an occasional university leader. The 
usual distribution of work is eight years for the grades, 
four for the high school, and four for the university 
baccalaureate degree. Based upon the assumption 
that this does not conserve the best interests of the 
pupils, we now have a number of proposed readjust- 
ments in the schools below the university, such as the 
6 and 2 and 4 plan, the 6 and 6 plan, the 6 and 4 and 4 
plan. Each of these has its strengths and its limita- 
tions. It is too early as yet to tell which of them, if 
any, solves the problem. 

These proposed administrative adjustments are one 
of the many evidences that the public schools of this 
country, and particularly the high schools, are literally 
under fire. Whether meriting it or not, criticism, 
ofttimes of the sharpest sort, is being directed at the 
curriculum, the methods, the organization, and the 
management and administration of high schools gen- 
erally. This criticism apparently is coming quite as 
much from men engaged in active educational work 
as from laymen. Numerous reforms have been pro- 
posed, — many of which have given primary considera- 
tion to the adjustment of materials to the different 
varieties of mind represented in the high school student 
population and have neglected the equally fundamental 
consideration of the social forces that quietly, but 
nevertheless effectively, determine the nature and 
organization of the school. New materials and methods 
have been selected and old ones preserved largely 



INTRODUCTION xxiii 

because of their supposed mind-training value. At- 
tention, however, has gradually centered upon both 
aspects of the problem, (i) that of reconstructing the 
character of the appeal of the high school so as to 
minister more adequately to the capacities and abili- 
ties of individual students, and (2) that of utilizing 
the educative materials and modes of work of social 
and industrial life as a basis for this reorganization. 

Professor Stout, recognizing the importance of these 
two principles, outlines a plan for increasing the gen- 
eral efficiency of high schools. The success of his 
scheme depends not so much upon the introduction 
of new subjects of study as upon a revision of our point 
of view with reference to the old subjects of study. 
It is true that he recommends the elimination of useless 
materials and the introduction of more serviceable 
materials to take their place. His constant problem 
is, what habits, what knowledge, what ideals, and 
what forms of organization are of most worth to high 
school pupils. His answer is, those habits, that 
knowledge, those ideals and attitudes, and those forms 
of organization are of the most value, that have the 
largest number of relations of identity with the most 
serviceable phases of social life outside the school. 
The educational values of the different subjects of 
study are, therefore, determined by their social utility. 

Although this is not a new point in general education, 
this book is one of the pioneer attempts in the field of 
secondary education at accounting for the purpose 
and nature of the high school in terms of its social 
background. 

L. D. C. 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 

INTRODUCTION 
CHAPTER I 

CHANGING SOCIAL AND EDUCATIONAL CONDITIONS 

The past twenty years have seen an unparalleled Growing 

... . interest in 

growth in the interest in secondary education. Dur- secondary 
ing that time the number attending secondary schools education 
has grown from 365,000 to 1,130,000. This is an 
increase of 210 per cent, while during the same period 
our population increased but 47 per cent. In other 
words, attendance in secondary schools has been 
growing more than four times as fast as the popula- 
tion. This rapid increase in attendance is a marked 
testimonial to our belief in secondary education. 

The high school has become the chief means of Growth of 

... the high 

secondary education in this country. These schools school 
have multiplied with unprecedented rapidity. Twenty 
years ago there were about 2500 public high schools. 
Now there are more than 11,000 of them. They 
have been established in sections of the country not 
hitherto supplied with any means of secondary edu- 
cation. Classes of our population are now sending 
their children to these schools who a generation ago 
had no thought of education beyond that provided 
by the elementary school. The trend is all in the 
direction of regarding high school education as a neces- 
sary equipment for all the children of all the people. 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



General 
causes of 
growth 



Demand for 
readjust- 
ments 



Attempt of 
the high 
school to 
minister to 
all classes 



This quite astonishing growth of high schools may 
be attributed to two causes. The first of these is a 
growing belief in education in general, and in second- 
ary education in particular. The second is that we 
have adopted the policy of public control of second- 
ary as well as of elementary education. Thus the 
public high school has supplanted the private academy. 

The mere fact that high schools have multiplied so 
rapidly is in itself very significant. But even more 
significant is the fact that the high school is now 
attempting to minister to all classes of society. New 
demands are being made upon the school. These 
demands mean that both educational aims and means 
as related to secondary education must undergo im- 
portant changes if the high school actually ministers 
to the needs of those who support it. Readjustments 
in neither aims nor means have kept pace with the 
demands made upon the school. The aim of secondary 
education defined in terms of preparation for college 
or conceived merely as a means of " discipline" must 
no longer exert a predominating influence upon the 
selection and organization of subject matter. 

The new classes of society to whom the high school 
is now undertaking to minister command the empha- 
sis of our attention. The children of farmers, labor- 
ers, mechanics, in fact, children from all walks and 
conditions of life, are attending high school in increas- 
ingly large numbers. Whereas a generation ago the 
farmer believed in secondary education for his boy 
who aspired to enter a profession, he did not regard 
it as necessary or even desirable for his other boy who 
would remain on the farm. But a great change is 



CHANGING CONDITIONS 3 

coming about in the attitude of the farmer where, 
indeed, it has not already taken place. So it is with 
the laborer, the mechanic, and representatives of 
other classes who until recently have had little or no 
interest in education beyond the elementary school. 

In any discussion of the character of the enrollment Girls con- 
in the high school we must not leave out of account majority 
that the majority are girls. The old secondary school enrolled 
was for boys, and for a considerable time after the 
principle of coeducation was accepted and the public 
high school established, boys were in the majority. 
Now the ratio is changed. In 1910, fifty-seven per 
cent of the pupils enrolled in high schools were girls. 
In the same year, girls constituted sixty per cent of 
those who graduated. The needs and interests of 
girls have as yet received but little consideration on 
the part of the high school. If they are to receive 
educational opportunities equal to those provided for 
boys, important readjustments in the aims and means 
of secondary education must be made. 

The foregoing are some of the changes which have changes in 
been taking place as related to the classes of society {^giyin 1 
now represented in the high school. They have had externals 
to do largely with externals in so far as they have 
exerted any influence upon the school. The increase 
in the amount of money expended for high school 
education has been greater than the increase in attend- 
ance. People have been lavish in their expenditures 
for high school purposes. As a rule, the high school 
building is the best school building in the community. 
The equipment of this building also receives first 
consideration. The pride of every community is in 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



its high school. But attention thus far has been 
directed largely to securing improvement in externals. 
Far too little attention has been given to securing 
internal readjustments in harmony with the needs 
of the community. 

Important changes have occurred outside the school. 
Some of these have operated as causes, resulting in 
the changes within the school already noted. Other 
social changes now effected, or in process of becom- 
ing, have as yet scarcely functioned at all. New 
ideals of citizenship, readjustments in the relation- 
ships of the home, and changes in industrial society, 
have thus far failed to influence to any considerable 
extent the aims and means of secondary education. 
These must now be taken into account and be made 
to serve in furnishing criteria for the internal reorgani- 
zation of the school. It is not enough to know that 
more are availing themselves of the opportunity of 
securing a high school education. The vital question 
is whether the school is providing adequate oppor- 
tunities for preparing our youth to meet the demand 
growing out of these numerous and fundamental social 
readjustments. 

Changed conditions are found in very marked de- 
gree in the industrial world. So pronounced have 
been these changes and so much attention has been 
directed to industry in its various forms, that this 
particular manifestation of our national life has given 
color to our whole social process. Industry has so 
overshadowed everything else that we are wont to 
designate our generation as commercial, practical, 
materialistic, according to our several points of view. 



CHANGING CONDITIONS 5 

Whatever may be the interpretation given to the 
facts, out of the situation have developed certain 
great social problems, the successful solution of which 
will put to its supreme test our efficiency as a people. 
The solution calls for an intimate and sympathetic 
knowledge of the work-a-day world on the part of all 
the people. Such knowledge must result in a proper 
social attitude and in an efficient social technique 
for grappling with the problems. 

The problems are not alone those relating to the Problems 
production of wealth. If they were thus limited our welfare" 1 
educational problem would be much simplified. New arising 
industrial conditions have not resulted alone in a 
demand for better trained workers. They have given 
rise to human-welfare problems which demand for 
their solution intelligent cooperation on the part of 
all the people. The health of the worker, the ade- 
quacy of his wages as related to the care of those who 
are dependent upon him, and all else that enters into 
the question of his efficiency as a member of the com- 
munity, are matters of public concern. The human 
equation is beginning to assume proportions hitherto 
unknown in the industrial world. It is the magni- 
tude and social significance of this equation that con- 
stitutes the chief problem for the secondary school. 

Great aggregates of wealth of which we have been Attention 
unduly boastful are beginning to be interpreted not JoSese* 6 " 
only as an evidence of great individual achievement P roblems 
but also as sure signs of social failure. They mean 
serious social maladjustments. They mean that the 
relationships, industrial and otherwise, out of which 
such conditions have arisen, are abnormalities incon- 



New civic 
conditions 



6 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

sistent with the spirit of democracy. It is with these 
abnormalities that we are chiefly concerned, and with 
their causes that we are attempting to deal. Our 
attention is being directed as never before to child 
labor, housing, conditions of labor for men and women, 
pure food laws, health departments, and kindred 
things. The distribution of wealth and how it is 
used, are coming to be seen as matters of public con- 
cern. Public sentiment must be aroused and ren- 
dered intelligent if the present movement to promote 
human welfare be successful. The high school is the 
chief agency upon which we can rely for the achieve- 
ment of these ends. 

Important readjustments have been taking place 
in matters relating to government. These are result- 
ing in new meanings of the word citizenship. In the 
generation preceding ours, form and function of govern- 
ment were legal questions. The rights of sovereignty, 
national or state, and the legality of the function 
performed were the vital things. The theory was 
that government was much circumscribed in its right 
to interfere in matters of social relationships. Its 
chief function was to protect the individual in the 
exercise of his legal rights. We are coming now to 
conceive its chief function to be securing to the indi- 
vidual the opportunity to exercise his human rights. 
In other words, we are attempting to substitute 
human relations for legal relations as a basis for 
efficient government. Fundamental laws will no doubt 
need to be rewritten and the machinery of government 
materially modified in order to bring about the neces- 
sary reorganization. This places a great responsibility 



CHANGING CONDITIONS 7 

upon the secondary school in training for intelligent 
citizenship. 

The home has come in for its full share of changes, changes in 
Whether these changes are all in the direction of social the home 
betterment need not be discussed here. We are con- 
cerned only with the facts and the relations which 
they bear to the functioning of the home in the com- 
munity. It is not to be inferred that the functions of 
the home are less important. The home is still the 
fundamental institution and must continue so to be. 
Its importance has not been lessened. But some of 
the reasons for its importance have become second- 
ary and others have been given greater prominence. 

The home is no longer the center of economic pro- New 
duction. The man is not employed in the home as f el ationships 

* : •> in the home 

a producer of wealth. His efficiency as a worker, 
however, depends in larger measure than ever before 
upon the conditions of life in the home. The economic 
importance of woman has not been lessened. On the 
contrary, the importance of her functions has tre- 
mendously increased. Her contribution is no longer 
chiefly on the side of production. She is now con- 
cerned quite largely with matters relating to expendi- 
ture and consumption. The organization of the home 
on the basis of wise consumption is no less important 
and even more difficult than it is on the basis of pro- 
duction. But it is a different type of organization 
and calls for correspondingly different knowledge, 
attitudes and technique. In providing opportunity 
for acquiring this knowledge and for the development 
of proper attitudes and technique, the high school 
comes in for a large share of responsibility. 



8 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The child 
and the 
home 



Importance 
of changes 
outside the 
school 



The child no longer contributes in any marked way 
to the home or to the community through occupa- 
tional activities carried on in the home. The economic 
contribution of childhood and youth is growing less 
and less important. This decline in economic im- 
portance of children means that the home is ceasing 
to provide for occupational activities. This fact gives 
rise, particularly as regards the training of youth, to 
an educational problem of very great significance. 
The school must do what the home has done, and it 
must do this on a larger scale and more efficiently 
than the home has been able to do it. 

These changes which are going on outside the school 
are fundamental social changes. They involve per- 
manent readjustments which have been taking place 
in society. Old social structures have given way or 
are giving way, and new structures are in process of 
forming. The changes constitute in themselves neces- 
sity for important readjustments in secondary educa- 
tion. Beyond this, however, and even more important 
is the fact that readjustments in society are only in 
the process of achievement. The school is not merely 
under the necessity of adjusting itself to meet the 
demands of a reconstructed society. It must train 
for participation in carrying on this work which is 
only just begun. Intelligence on the part of the 
many is the safeguard for the future. This intelli- 
gence must permeate all classes and conditions of 
society. The school constitutes the chief agency upon 
which society can rely for giving direction to the 
work of social reorganization. 

The changes in society, institutional and otherwise, 



CHANGING CONDITIONS o 

are particularly significant as related to determining Social 
the character and extent of the work of the high t^STt^ 
school. The beginning of the adolescent period is no the w . ork of 

. . the high 

longer signalized by quitting school to the extent it school 
was a few years ago. We now regard this period as 
large with meaning from the point of view of prepar- 
ing for efficient social service. The elementary school 
can do but little more than lay the foundation for such 
preparation. The college is now and will continue 
to remain an educational opportunity for the few. 
The high school must constitute the great effective 
socializing institution in our civilization. 

These changes in society have not resulted in corre- General 
sponding changes in secondary education. Readjust- Stare to* 
ments within the high school both as regards aim and m^e read- 
means have not kept pace with the legitimate demands JUS 
made upon it. One very potent reason for this failure 
is found in the prevalence of educational ideals which 
actually control in practice. It is true that, theoretic- 
ally, criteria for determining aims have undergone 
important changes. But these changes have not in 
the main contributed toward rendering the high school 
more efficient in the training of youth in a democracy 
like ours. They have tended rather to foster a type 
of secondary education not unlike the type furnished 
by the schools which the high schools have all but 
displaced. In spite of the changes in educational 
theory, the old meaning of education still predomi- 
nates largely in controlling educational practice. 

The unprecedented interest in education in general, Unprece- 
and in secondary education in particular, has in itself interest in 
been a cause of failure in making readjustments. education 



IO 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Too much 
attention 
on the 
articulation 
of the work 
of the 
schools 



Resulting 
in neglect 
of those 
who drop 
out of school 



Public control of education has also been a contribut- 
ing factor. Attention has been centered so largely 
upon the multiplication of schools that relatively little 
attention has been given to the redefining of guiding 
aims or to a reorganization of practical means. 

The emphasis which has been placed upon the im- 
portance of articulating the work of the high school 
and the college has exerted a powerful influence. 
Values have been thought of largely in terms of higher 
education. Education, like the sack of gold at the 
foot of the rainbow, has been regarded as something 
always just ahead. The elementary school has pre- 
pared for the high school, and the high school has pre- 
pared for the college. In the thought of those who have 
controlled the policy of the high school, the school at 
the top of the system has furnished the larger and in 
fact the only real educational opportunity. In the minds 
of these same people the function of the high school was 
to prepare for entrance to higher institutions. 

The ladder which we have finally constructed may 
or may not stand for the highest type of educational 
achievement. If its construction has meant the neg- 
lect of certain important criteria which should have 
been employed in determining the function of the 
high school, then the very perfection of our work 
constitutes its failure. We have been so absorbed in 
constructing the ladder with its foot at the door of 
the kindergarten and the top resting on the threshold 
of higher institutions, that we have forgotten some 
very important considerations. We have neglected 
to give proper heed to the many who have fallen and 
continue to fall in the upward way. The large num- 



CHANGING CONDITIONS n 

ber who annually drop out of school have received 
scarcely no consideration. And further, we have failed 
to inquire with any degree of insistence whether those 
who have successfully made the assent bear the marks 
of the educated person. 

We are now inquiring with a good deal of concern This class 
whether we have not inadvertently defeated the pur- ofstu dents 

J r require 

pose which we set out so hopefully to achieve, viz. to more 
provide a high school education for all the children of 
all the people. In our attempt to democratize second- 
ary education we are wondering whether we have not 
so placed our emphases that the goal has been set 
beyond the reach of the many whom we have hoped 
most to serve. It is entirely proper to feel a sense 
of pride in our educational system. A well articu- 
lated system of schools such as ours, which makes it 
easy for one to pass from a lower school to a higher 
one, is a notable achievement. So far as it lies within 
the power of the state an open way should be provided 
from the kindergarten to the university. But we are 
beginning to see that more attention should be given 
to providing educational opportunities along the way 
and relatively less attention to the values which lie 
only at the end of the road. 

This change of emphasis as it relates to the high Failure now 
school is of large significance. The rather general- generally 
ized educational ideals functioning for half a century recognized 
in educational practice are now a matter of such 
serious controversy that revaluations and readjust- 
ments are inevitable. In fact the work has already 
begun. Changes in the high school are now taking 
place. Its failure to perform its full duty has become 



12 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



a part of the consciousness of the average man. Since 
the question as to whether he shall send his children 
to the high school is no longer in doubt, he will have 
more and more to say regarding what kind of a school 
it shall be to which he sends them. He is beginning to 
inquire with a degree of intelligence hitherto unknown, 
what difference education really makes in the lives of 
his children and his neighbors' children. His judgment 
of values will finally largely determine the criteria for 
distinguishing between the educated and the unedu- 
cated person. 

No other single influence is having so much to do 
with the democratizing of secondary education as this 
intelligent interest on the part of all the people. At- 
tention to the work of the high school is entering 
upon its constructive stage. Blind faith in second- 
ary education, accompanied by a good deal of destruc- 
tive criticism, has had its day. It is being replaced 
by an intelligent conviction that the high school can 
be made our most efficient agency for preparing the 
youth, not only for higher institutions, but for success- 
ful participation in the affairs of the community. 
This placing of the high school in new relationships 
by those who patronize it, is large with meaning. The 
vital relationship of education to the new citizenship, 
the home, industry, and leisure occupation, renders 
clear as nothing else has done the demands upon the 
secondary school. 

This democratized ideal of secondary education, 
which we are just beginning to work out in practice, 
is a part of the whole movement to define education 
in terms of social efficiency. It rests upon a two-fold 



CHANGING CONDITIONS 13 

conception of education, the individual and the social. 
It deals with health, strength, knowledge, attitudes, 
and technique in the control of life forces. It further 
deals with these forces in such way as to render the 
individual efficient as a factor in social progress. Thus 
individual efficiency and social efficiency are conceived 
not as ends in education mutually opposed, but sup- 
plementary, the one having no meaning without the 
other. 

An imperative necessity exists for a restatement Restatement 
of the aim of secondary education and for a corre- reo^aiSza- 
sponding reorganization of means. The aim should tionot 
take into account in a degree not now present the demanded 
needs and interests of all classes in society who patron- 
ize the high school. The curriculum stands in need 
of thorough-going revision both as regards the sub- 
jects offered and also as related to the subject matter 
used in instruction. Reconstructions are now taking 
place and it is highly important that they should be in 
accord with the actual demands being made upon the 
school. 

Part I of this book will be devoted to a detailed dis- 
cussion of the function of the high school. Part II 
will treat of the means to be relied upon for insuring 
greater efficiency in the work of the school. 



PART I — THE FUNCTION OF THE 
HIGH SCHOOL 



CHAPTER II 

FACTORS DETERMINING FUNCTION 

New factors are entering into the determination of 
the aim of the high school. The controlling influence, 
that of higher institutions, is being replaced by other 
influences. These influences, psychological and social, 
are beginning to bring about changes in the aim of 
secondary education. In spite of the phenomenal 
increase in the number of high school students, the 
proportional number entering higher institutions has 
remained practically the same for more than twenty 
years. This means that the emphasis in the work of 
the school must be shifted more and more in the direction 
of preparation for participation in community affairs. 

The fact that so many high school students drop 
out of school should enter more largely into our con- 
siderations. Since 1890 the enrollment has more than 
trebled, but the proportion of those who drop out 
of school has remained unchanged. During this period, 
for every one hundred enrolled in the high school, 
forty-three have belonged to the first year, twenty-seven 
to the second year, eighteen to the third year, and 
twelve to the fourth year. Approximately seventy per 
cent of the students drop out before the third year. 



FACTORS DETERMINING FUNCTION 15 

More than eighty per cent of those who enter do not 
remain in school for the work of the fourth year. 

These figures should challenge our attention. First, This fact 
the causes for this loss, in so far as they exist within ^just- 
the school, should be removed. A far larger propor- ments 
tion of the students should be found in the upper 
classes. Until this result is achieved, the high school 
must stand convicted of inefficiency. Second, the 
needs of those who inevitably drop out of school should 
receive more consideration. Less emphasis should be 
placed upon the relation of the work of the earlier 
years to that of the later years of the course. The 
work of the earlier years should be determined more 
largely by its value to those who drop out of school. 
In any event, those who remain in school for only a 
part of the course are entitled to far more considera- 
tion than they have heretofore received. 

The demands which the community is making upon Community 
the high school are becoming more and more specific. JfJJJJjjJj 
Higher institutions have always made specific demands, ^gh school 
and for this reason they have constituted the deter- specific 
mining influence. Now that community demands are 
being stated in relatively exact and concrete terms, 
they will become effective in the same way. We 
have, of course, always assumed that secondary edu- 
cation does make a difference in the activities of those 
educated. But just now we are dealing with this 
question of differences in a very practical way. Con- 
crete tests are being applied as never before, to deter- 
mine whether the high school is actually contributing 
its share to the social efficiency of those who are for 
a longer or shorter time enrolled in the schools. 



i6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Nature of 

these 

demands 



New 

interpreta- 
tion being 
given to 
the mean- 
ing of youth 



Multiplicity 
of demands 
results in 
conflict 



Preparation for the life in the home is becoming 
a part of the work of the school. The school is also 
to have a part in preparing the boy to become a suc- 
cessful farmer. Vocational interests in general are 
to be rendered intelligent by the school. The value 
of education is to be measured in part by increased 
vocational efficiency. These represent some of the 
specific demands which the community is making 
upon the high school. And these demands have al- 
ready begun to function in determining the character 
of the work attempted by the school. 

The new interpretation being given to the meaning 
of youth as related to education is doing much to 
break down traditions and to establish new criteria 
for judging educational values. The education of 
youth is no longer conceived merely in terms of the 
development of intellectual powers. On the con- 
trary, the whole range of needs, interests, and capaci- 
ties are being taken into account. As a result of this 
change in attitude toward the adolescent, the aim of 
secondary education has been broadened and the 
work of the high school rendered vastly more impor- 
tant. New demands are being made upon the school 
and readjustments are called for in order that these 
demands may be met. 

The very multiplicity of demands made upon the 
high school renders the problem of secondary educa- 
tion a very difficult one. And the difficulty arises not 
alone out of the number of these demands. It has 
its rise chiefly out of the fact of conflicts which are 
inevitable. Now that the high school is patronized 
by all classes in society, it is but natural that some of 



FACTORS DETERMINING FUNCTION 17 

the demands made upon it arise out of narrow, selfish 
interests. In an industrial community, for example, 
the demand that the high school place its emphasis 
upon technical education becomes very insistent. If 
this demand controls the policy of the school, the 
result is that larger and more important social inter- 
ests are neglected. A proper balance must be main- 
tained in order that social efficiency and not merely 
industrial efficiency may result from the work of the 
school. 

In determining whether a demand upon the school Criteria for 
is legitimate and if legitimate, to what extent it should legitimacy 
determine the policy of the school, the present needs of demands 
of the adolescent must always be taken into account. 
No community demand should be allowed to inter- 
fere with supplying these needs. Whatever else the 
school should do, its first duty is to furnish an environ- 
ment, intellectual and social, inside of which the nor- 
mal development of the youth will be best promoted. 
If it does not furnish such environment, nothing that 
it can do will compensate for this delinquency. The 
home is first of all concerned with having its children 
well taken care of, and only secondarily interested in 
having them transformed into intellectual prodigies or 
skilled workers. The interests of society are best served 
by keeping in mind that the function of the high school 
is to care for the whole on-going life of youth. 

It is evident that the aim of secondary education Aim cannot 
is a complex one. In our attempt to redefine the aim belted in 
in harmony with the complexity of the situation, it noiogy 
becomes clear that old terminology utterly fails to 
serve any useful purpose. " Mental discipline," "cul- 



i8 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Aim defined 
in terms of 
social 
efficiency 



Necessity 
for an 
analysis of 
the term 



ture," " preparation for life," and like terms were at 
best never sufficiently clear to serve as guiding aims. 
As long as the demands of higher institutions dic- 
tated the curriculum of the high school the failure of 
these generalized concepts was not so apparent nor 
so significant. But now there is an imperative neces- 
sity for clearness and definiteness in the statement of 
aim in order that it may serve as a guide in educational 
practice. The intolerable confusion which now exists 
should not be permitted to continue. 

The use of the term social efficiency is peculiarly 
appropriate in defining the aim of secondary educa- 
tion. The adolescent period is the one in which 
socialization takes place in largest measure. It is the 
period in which important social adjustments must be 
made. Failing in his endeavor to make adjustments, 
the individual emerges at best unsocial, at worst anti- 
social. The adolescent is orienting himself in the 
social world. He is getting his bearings, and the proc- 
ess is going on in some fashion whatever kind of 
school he may be in or whether he is in school at all. 
Every normal adolescent is developing social interests 
and arriving at judgments of value. Whether these 
interests are desirable and the judgments valid will 
depend very largely upon the social environment from 
which the stimuli come and in which the responses 
take place. Training in social efficiency is therefore 
peculiarly the work of the high school. 

However useful the term social efficiency may be, 
an analysis of the term is needed in order to reveal 
what the school must actually undertake to do and 
what means it must employ in order to realize the 



FACTORS DETERMINING FUNCTION 19 

aim. It means, of course, fitness on the part of the 
individual to meet the demands which society will 
make upon him. But this leaves the meaning, if not 
indefinite, at least too general to serve as guide in 
educational practice. It appears that there is no 
better way of making the necessary analysis than to 
select certain points of view from which to regard the Points of 
individual who is to be educated. Physical needs, ^htehto* 
play interests and activities, vocational demands, regard the 
civic duties, preparation for college, and the peculiar the high 
needs and interests of girls, constitute the more im- scho01 
portant of these points of view. 

The function of the high school is first of all to pro- Physical 
mote the health and physical development of the boys ^ ee t ^l must 
and girls. Neglect in this relation cannot be com- into account 
pensated for by anything else the school may do. 
Well planned courses in physical training will accom- 
plish something. But nothing short of well-defined, 
specific aims in physical education will result in the 
selection of suitable means. The aim must seek the 
correction of physical defects and the building up of 
correct habits of life. It is necessary that the means 
insure intelligence about the body and its functions, 
and result in proper mental attitudes as related to the 
welfare and care of the body. Because of great funda- 
mental physical changes which are going on during 
adolescence, the responsibility resting upon the high 
school should no longer be ignored. Physical effi- 
ciency lies at the very foundation of social efficiency. 

The vocational interests of young people furnish a Vocational 
very fruitful standpoint from which to regard the ^terests 1 ' 1 
work of the high school. In the whole complex of the considered 



20 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Necessary 
for training 
is leisure 
occupation 



developing social consciousness of adolescents, these 
interests form a very important part. They consti- 
tute the greatest single cause for so many students 
dropping out of high school. In the average Ameri- 
can community the majority who drop out of school 
do so not because of economic necessity but because 
their interests lead them elsewhere. These interests 
should be utilized by the school. By so doing not 
only will a larger number complete the high school 
course, but all who come within the influence of the 
school will be rendered more efficient. For many 
young people, no need is more insistent than is the 
need of vocational guidance. If they are rendered 
intelligent as regards the choice of occupation, the 
high school must do it. All need some knowledge of 
the work-a-day world, and all need to have developed 
intelligent and sympathetic attitudes toward its prob- 
lems. In the absence of such knowledge and atti- 
tudes the hope of an industrial democracy is vain. 
The high school must constitute the greatest democra- 
tizing influence in this country. 

Another point of view from which the work of the 
high school should be regarded is that of the interests 
of adolescents in leisure occupation. The social in- 
stincts are now ripening, and these find expression 
largely through group activities. The gang spirit is 
strong and if not properly controlled and directed, 
both individuals and society suffer. The average com- 
munity has no greater problem concerning its young 
people than that of providing suitable forms of leisure 
occupation. The only institution in the community 
which can in any satisfactory way solve this problem 



FACTORS DETERMINING FUNCTION 21 

is the high school. It should furnish a place where 
leisure time may be spent and provide opportunity 
for spending the time wholesomely and profitably. 

Training in civic efficiency is a task belonging pe- Training in 
culiarly to the high school. The years of adolescence efficiency 
are the ones in which social ideals are largely formed demanded 
and social attitudes developed. During this period 
youth is confronted with the necessity of making social 
readjustments. The control of the group is substituted 
for control by elders and parents. New standards of 
conduct are now set up, new sources of authority 
established, and new modes of social expression sought 
for. Training in all these things is needed. The high 
school which does not provide this training both as 
regards its curriculum and its social organization 
neglects one of its greatest opportunities. 

The high school now constitutes the chief means for Function of 
preparation for higher institutions. Eighty-five per preparing 
cent of all our secondary schools are high schools, and institutions 
eighty-eight per cent of secondary students are en- 
rolled in high schools. These figures indicate the 
relative importance of the high school as a preparatory 
institution. That college entrance requirements have 
in too large measure determined the work of the high 
school none will deny. But the fact still remains that 
the high school must continue to prepare an increas- 
ingly large number of young people for work in higher 
institutions. This is an extremely important func- 
tion, and one of the aims of the high school should be 
to inspire its students to go to college and to fit them 
to meet the requirements which will be made upon 
them. It should be kept in mind in this connection 



22 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Peculiar 
needs of 
interests of 
girls demand 
considera- 
tion 



Statement 
of aim 
must in- 
clude these 
points of 
view 



that preparation for college means more than merely 
meeting entrance requirements. It means also prep- 
aration to take advantage of the opportunities made 
possible only through a college course. 

The needs and interests of girls differ materially in 
certain important particulars from those of boys. 
The more delicate physical structure of girls and the 
physical changes peculiar to them which take place 
during adolescence call for a type of physical edu- 
cation in keeping with sex peculiarities. Girls as well 
as boys need physical education, not merely physical 
training. And the means employed must be in har- 
mony with their peculiar needs. The relations which 
women sustain to the home and to the community 
demand a type of education for girls which takes into 
account these relations. If the high school is to edu- 
cate for social efficiency it cannot ignore the needs 
and interests of girls as related to the social demands 
which will be made upon them. Society is no less 
concerned in educating for the duties of the home than 
it is in training for the work of the farm or the factory. 
It is not less interested in efficient women than it is 
in efficient men in the solution of its social problems. 

It is clear that the aim of the high school cannot be 
stated in a single phrase. The several points of view 
from which the high school should be regarded must 
somehow be included in any statement of aim if it 
functions fruitfully in guiding educational practice. 
These several standpoints will be discussed somewhat 
in detail in the chapters immediately following. 



CHAPTER III 
THE PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF EDUCATION 

There is quite general agreement that the word Education 
education has possessed too largely merely intellectual t0 o narrow 
content. This narrow conception of the meaning of meanm g 
the term has ruled, in practice at least, in spite of 
educational theory which should have caused the 
school to function in a broader, more inclusive way. 
Youth as it is actually constituted by interests, needs, 
and capacities, must be regarded as furnishing criteria 
for determining educational aim, means, method, and 
organization. The whole on-going life of youth should 
be more fully taken into account. The immediate 
practical question that the secondary school must 
answer is, what are the present needs that the school 
can supply and how, through the exercise of present 
capacities, can these needs be best supplied. These 
needs — physical, mental, social, ethical — and their 
corresponding capacities for development, furnish the 
only proper guide in educational practice. 

One of the outstanding fundamental peculiarities of significance 
adolescent life is its physical aspect. Great changes are physical 
taking place which are of transcendent importance. as P ects 
Rapid growth, organic changes, disturbed functions, 
sex impulses, are some of the more apparent marks of 
these changes. These fundamental facts have not had 
the attention in secondary education which they de- 



24 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The school 
should 
educate for 
health 



serve. First and last, every American youth has a 
right to be possessed of a healthy body. Whatever is 
done or is not done by the school, that hinders or 
fails to help him in the achievement of this worthy 
end, should not be included in our concept of education. 
High ideals of scholarship, rigid requirements, record 
books, college accredited, are but things that mock us 
in the presence of perverted bodily functions and 
broken health. Much has been written recently upon 
this theme and some exaggerations have no doubt 
been indulged in. But the fact still remains that the 
average secondary school is derelict in its duty to the 
youth of our land. This right to health is paramount. 
Not only should the school provide healthful con- 
ditions, but it should educate for health. The prac- 
tice of charging ill-health to our ancestors and to 
providence has had its day. Diseases are now pretty 
largely traceable to well-defined causes. Curative 
medicine and surgery are accomplishing much. But 
curative agencies, however important and efficient 
they may become, should be regarded as only tem- 
porary — as only a step in our upward progress from 
ignorance and superstition to knowledge and en- 
lightenment. Preventive agencies must supplant cura- 
tive ones. For the latter we must necessarily depend 
upon the knowledge and skill of the physician. For 
the former we must of equal necessity look largely to 
the enlightened layman. Perhaps in no single field of 
human endeavor has there been more notable achieve- 
ment than in the field of curative medicine, and much 
has also been accomplished on the preventive side. 
More and more emphasis is coming to be placed upon 



PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF EDUCATION 25 

the latter, and this emphasis should be increased 
through organized, intelligent effort. It is necessary 
to continue to educate the physician for expert serv- 
ice, but we must now begin to educate the individual 
for right living. Knowledge and skill are the requisites 
of the expert. Knowledge and right attitudes are 
necessary to the individuals who constitute the great 
majority in society. The argument that we know 
more than we practice is not conclusive. Our knowl- 
edge is only partial and fragmentary. It is acquired 
too late to be very effective, and the general attitude 
of indifference to the whole problem of physical edu- 
cation renders it largely useless. The high school 
age is the one in which knowledge of the body, 
its functions, and its care can be most effectively 
utilized. 

The school must be awakened to its opportunity Large re- 
and its duty. For reasons that are perfectly obvious, resting upon 
the secondary school must assume a large part of the Jj^J* 
responsibility for this type of education. The child 
before he goes to high school can be taught many 
things useful; but his immaturity will prevent any- 
thing like the completeness in instruction necessary 
as a basis for intelligent living. The care of the child 
is important as a foundation. But the youth must 
be taught in a much more comprehensive way to care 
for himself. This evident limitation on the elementary 
school, and the fact that comparatively few will ever 
attend a higher institution, make it clear that whatever 
is accomplished in the way of educating for physical 
efficiency must be accomplished in large measure dur- 
ing the high school period. 



26 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

The importance and character of the problem can 
be got before us in no better way than by reference to 
some of the conditions calling for increased intelli- 
gence in matters relating to physical welfare. 
piagu'e^ Mte Tuberculosis is a widespread disease affecting people 
in all parts of our country and in every station of life. 
It is rightly termed the " Great White Plague." The 
mortality roll is high, and countless thousands drag 
out a miserable and profitless existence because of 
its ravages. The pulmonary type is only one of its 
many forms. The bacilli infest parts of the body 
other than the lungs with equal frequency and with 
the same fatal results. Tuberculosis is not inherited. 
While the individual may inherit certain predisposi- 
tions, he acquires the disease by infection. He may 
inherit the soil, but his fellows, not his ancestors, pro- 
vide the seed. The causes of this disease are now well 
known to physicians. They should be rendered a 
matter of common knowledge. The disease in its 
earlier stages is curable, and what is more important, 
its prevention is in every instance possible. Prevent- 
ive agencies, if rightly employed, would in a genera- 
tion eradicate the disease. The agencies are both 
individual and social. The individual must be en- 
lightened as to its causes and as to methods of pre- 
vention. Society must see to it that those who are 
infected shall receive expert medical attention and a 
cure be effected if possible. If this is not possible, 
then adopt restrictive measures which shall prevent 
further infection. It does not seem to be out of the 
bounds of reasonable expectation to say that the 
secondary school will soon be one of the chief social 



PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF EDUCATION 27 

agencies employed in the control and final eradica- 
tion of tuberculosis. 

The problem growing out of the social evil is prima- The social 
rily an educational problem. It is not only a tremen- 
dously important problem, but also an extremely difficult 
one. Nothing is gained by attempting to minimize its 
importance on the one hand, or its difficulty on the 
other. Neither indifference nor hysterical opposition to 
all attempts to grapple with it and solve it, will lead us 
anywhere. The recital of conditions is unnecessary. 
The facts are plain enough to all who have knowledge 
of the situation. Every reason that prompts us to deal 
with tuberculosis, obtains in respect to the social evil 
and other reasons, even more insistent, demand con- 
sideration. The fact is, we shall have to face the 
problem and lend ourselves courageously to its solution. 

It is evident that restrictive measures, however rigidly Education 
they may be enforced, will not eradicate or even greatly ** £ s means 
lessen the evil. The key to the situation lies in a type elimination 
of education that will, through an enlightened intelli- 
gence, make such conditions impossible. The education 
of our youth will provide the only way in which any- 
thing constructive and permanent can be accomplished. 
Whether the home can be made an effective agent to 
this end, or whether the school can be relied upon to 
accomplish our purpose, are matters of present con- 
troversy. But it seems evident that the school, either 
by direct instruction or indirectly through its influence 
in the community, will have an important part in the 
solution of the problem. 

This matter of sex instruction cannot be dismissed 
without full and fair consideration. If there were 



28 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

importance no social evil, with its attendant physical and moral 
eencetn" considerations, the necessity for enlightenment on the 
matters part of young people in regard to sexual functions 
functions would still remain. The perversion of these functions 
is not rare, and the sexual impulse is so intimately 
bound up with the development of the adolescent, 
that we shall sooner or later have to provide in some 
manner for appropriate instruction. It does not seem 
that we can much longer allow conventionalities to 
blind us to the demands of the situation or to deter us 
from meeting these demands. 
Significance The matter of normal physical development is a 
physical vital one, and where ignorance prevents it and knowl- 
deveiopment eQ ig e promotes it, we should not prefer ignorance to 
knowledge. Health of body, so desirable in itself and 
contributing as it does to health and vigor of mind, 
must first of all be sought for the adolescent. The 
interests of society should not longer be sacrificed to 
mediaeval standards set up by false notions concern- 
ing the body and its functions. If health considera- 
tions, used in the sense of mere absence of disease, 
did not demand such instruction, the duty of the 
school to promote normal physical growth still remains. 
Education Education should provide not only for a healthy 
efficiency* 11 body but also for an efficient one functioning in such 
a way that its vitality is at the maximum. Low vital- 
ity does not always mean disease, but no one can 
live an efficient life on this plane. This is mere nega- 
tive health — health because of what one has escaped 
rather than because of what one has achieved. And 
vigor and vitality of body should be regarded as an 
achievement the same as vigor and virility of mind. 



PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF EDUCATION 29 

When we have set this up as the first worthy end of 
secondary education and have provided appropriate 
means for achieving it, we shall have taken a long 
step toward making the school an educational institu- 
tion in fact as well as in name. An efficient body is a 
worthy goal to set up for American youth and will 
serve as a challenge to right living as nothing else can 
do. It will be the positive factor upon which we can 
rely. To the fear of consequences we shall be able 
to add the reward of achievement. 

In the discussion of physical education, efficiency Habits of 
can have no narrower meaning than it has elsewhere. jjfj^™ 8 
Intelligent attitudes in matters of health and kncwl- control 
edge of how to maintain it should result from the work 
of the school. Habits of right living should be estab- 
lished and motor control promoted. Attempts which 
have been made in the way of physical education have 
not usually been wisely conceived nor intelligently 
carried out. These efforts have been carried on under 
the titles, " physical training" and "physical culture" 
with results, in general, failing far short of what really 
constitutes physical education. The concept must 
be enlarged and vitalized and the organization of the 
school, both intellectual and social, made to contrib- 
ute more fully to the realization of the larger aim. 

The practical difficulties are not to be underesti- Practical 
mated. Long-standing prejudices and social taboos ^J^® 8 
cannot be got rid of in a day. In matters of sexual func- recognized 
tions and relations these prejudices are deeply rooted, overcome 
Nothing will be gained by ignoring these facts in an 
attempt to make the school an agent in promoting 
intelligence regarding these matters so vital to both 



30 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

individual and social welfare. On the other hand, 
the policy of refusing to grapple with the problem be- 
cause of these difficulties cannot longer commend itself 
to thoughtful people. Those things which the school 
can do with little or no opposition, if done well, will 
go a long way toward breaking down prejudice through 
making clear the meaning and results of physical edu- 
cation. When the school has done what it reasonably 
can do under all the circumstances, much will have 
been accomplished in the way of securing the support 
of public opinion in further endeavor. The time is 
near at hand when the high school will constitute the 
most fruitful means for promoting the health and 
physical efficiency of the youth of every community. 



CHAPTER IV 

DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING AND 
GUIDANCE 

The problem which many high school students, Majority 
particularly boys, will soon have to solve is that of ffnfni 
making a living. This question is pressing in upon occupation 

,, .. . on or before 

them and frequently becomes so insistent that they completing 
leave school before the completion of the course, ^s 118011001 
However much we might wish it otherwise, this is 
one of the outstanding facts which confronts us. The 
ranks of the students of secondary schools are con- 
stantly thus depleted. And for those who remain, 
the time when they shall likewise face this practical 
problem of earning a livelihood is but deferred. Only 
a limited few will go to college, and the great majority 
will enter into the active life of the community in 
one capacity or another. Whether they are equipped 
so to do is a matter of vital importance to them and 
of no less importance to the community. 

If this falling off in the school attendance were due Pupils leave 
largely to the necessity of entering some gainful occu- because of 
pation, the duty of the school would still be clearly vocational 

. . interests 

that of doing what it can to prepare for occupational 
activities. But fortunately, the most of those who 
leave school do so not because of necessity but because 
of an awakening interest in the work-a-day world. 
Thus far our efforts have been almost entirely in the 



32 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



School 

should 

render 

these 

interests 

intelligent 



direction of stifling these interests. We have re- 
garded them as premature and have held them to be 
inimical to the best interests of the individual and of 
society as well. On the contrary, we should regard 
these interests as perfectly normal and take them 
into account in the work of the school. They are due 
to an awakening social consciousness. The social 
environment, made possible by the ripening social 
instincts, stimulates the youth to social activity, and 
one of the modes of response is to engage in some 
gainful occupation. This call is insistent. It fires 
his imagination and stirs his blood. Finding no 
opportunity in the school to give play to his imagina- 
tion or to employ his energy, he answers the challenge 
to the rising tide of enthusiasm for fellowship with 
those who are doing the work of the world. 

The difficulty is not that he has these interests. 
There are no higher interests than these, rightly con- 
ceived and properly ministered unto. The trouble 
lies in the fact that they are largely instinctive instead 
of intelligent, and are liable to lead the youth where 
he is not prepared to go. Interests should be culti- 
vated and refined and be made to serve as guides in 
the great highway of the common life. To serve in 
home or shop, in factory or field or market place, is 
not mean service if one performs his task with joy 
and gladness in the thought that what he gives is 
more the measure of his success than what he gets. 
Interest in art and poetry and music is not to be 
denied; but interest in work must stand beside these 
on the high plane of noble living. 

The claim of these interests will be disputed on the 



DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING 33 

ground that the secondary school should not special- Objections 
ize. The answer to this objection is that the high education 
school should not offer opportunity for narrow speciali- consider ed 
zation. It should not be narrow in the opportunities 
offered for growth and development. But it should 
supply in larger measure than it is now doing the 
needs of the adolescent and in such a way as to pre- 
pare him to meet the social demands which will be 
made upon him. In an effort to render the hign^ 
school more efficient in this relation, no one should 
be disturbed by the charge that the school is lowering 
its standards. The high school has too long been a 
school-master's school in which the normal interests 
of youth have been neglected. Its curriculum has 
been dictated by professional and traditional influ- 
ences, with too little attention to the demands right- 
fully made upon it. 

The American high school should in no sense be High school 
made a technical school. On the contrary, its duty JjjJJ 
will be most fully performed by reducing specialization and refine 
in any form to the minimum. This does not mean, interests 
however, that the school should not offer opportunity 
for vocational training of a kind that will furnish to 
the pupils the opportunity to develop and refine the 
great vocational life interests. As has been said, 
these interests are normal, desirable, and highly useful 
if properly guided and controlled. If there were no 
other reasons than purely psychological ones, the 
manual arts would rightfully have a place in every 
high school. If we ignore the social demands and 
turn deaf ears to the so-called " clamor" that is aris- 
ing in the community for things practical and things 



34 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Preparation 
for gaining 
a living 
a vital 
matter 



real, we should still be under the necessity of creating 
some such environment within the school as frequently 
leads the pupils to leave school in order to find oppor- 
tunity for normal expression of their interests. If we 
were to shut out the fact that the young people will 
soon be called upon to engage in gainful occupation of 
some kind, a true appreciation of educational value 
would lead us to conclude that the school environment 
must be in harmony with the needs and interests of 
those being educated. 

These boys and girls will soon face the realities of 
earning a livelihood. Whether their interests are 
superficial and temporary, or intelligent and perma- 
nent, is extremely important. Whether one is pre- 
pared to face the responsibility of making a living is 
a vital question. The preparation for gaining an hon- 
est living is a serious matter. To say that it involves 
nothing but dollars and cents, that it is only a matter 
of bread and butter, that such an educational aim is 
unworthy, is to convict one of ignorance of its mean- 
ing. There are other questions involved. Whether 
we can earn a living with a reasonable expenditure of 
time and energy is a question of no mean dimensions. 
Leisure as well as work is involved. To educate for 
leisure, which is desirable and necessary, and to neg- 
lect to educate for work in order that leisure may 
be rendered possible, is illogical. One should be so 
equipped for his work that his efficiency will secure 
both time and means for leisure in which to enjoy 
the things that the school has taught him to value 
most as contributing to the art of living. 

It is not only a question of whether one is capable 



DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING 35 

of making a living. One's attitude toward his work importance 

„ . _ . . . of right 

is equally important. Lack of preparation means not attitude 
only lack of ability to work effectively but also lack of ^JT d 
appreciation of its meaning. If we would dignify an 
occupation we must render it worthy by encouraging 
preparation for it. If we would have it looked upon 
other than as a means merely of acquiring dollars and 
cents, let us cease to regard it as beneath the work of 
the school to provide means to get ready for it. Noth- 
ing else has been done that has had so much influence 
in changing the attitude of the farmer boy toward the 
occupation of his father as agricultural education. 
High schools where such courses are offered do not 
undertake to turn out agricultural experts and they 
should make no such attempt. But they have dig- 
nified the occupation by simply recognizing it. The 
knowledge gained by the boy is not very extensive, 
nor perhaps is it in all respects entirely practical. 
But the method employed in acquiring it, and above 
all the place in which he acquires it, has an influence 
of incalculable value upon his attitude toward the 
occupation. So it is with domestic science in the 
school. It dignifies home-keeping simply by recog- 
nizing it. The information gained is of some value, 
but the chief value after all is the attitude on the part 
of the girl toward what in the very nature of things, 
will constitute her life occupation. 

On the community side we find no less demand for interest of 
vocational efficiency on the part of the individual, vo^atiomd 
First, as regards the home: Parents are interested glance 
in having their children get a right start in life. The 
choice of occupation and the preparation therefore 



36 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Points of 
contact 
between 
home and 
school 



are matters of large import and are primary considera- 
tions to parents. They know from experience how 
much depends upon economic efficiency. They de- 
sire, even more than some other very valuable things, 
vocational guidance for their children. The objec- 
tion is raised that the high school age is too early 
to attempt to give vocational guidance. There are 
two answers to this objection. One has already been 
made, viz. that vocational interests are already de- 
manding attention. The other answer is that the 
great majority of the pupils enrolled in the high school 
will never attend college or a technical school. If 
their education is to provide vocational guidance at 
all, the high school must provide it. 

The home is involved from another point of view. 
Cooperation must exist between the home and the 
school. At the present time cooperation for the most 
part consists in the home giving the child over to the 
school to do with him what it will. Points of actual con- 
tact between the two institutions are lacking. There are 
too few specific interests in common having concrete 
forms of expression. The relations of the home to the 
child include present problems as well as those which 
have to do with his future welfare. The parents are in- 
terested not alone in the child's attitude toward a future 
occupation, but also in his attitude toward the economic 
necessities of the home. The absence of vocational inter- 
ests in the school has a tendency to estrange pupils from 
home duties rather than to encourage participation 
therein. The presence of such activities provides com- 
mon interests constituting points of contact that result 
in mutual understanding and helpfulness. 



DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING 37 

Turning now to a consideration of the larger com- society 
munity interests, it appears that vocational training Jo™^ 1 ^ 
has every justification. The community is interested training and 
in the vocational efficiency of the individual on the gm ance 
protective side. It needs to protect itself first of all 
against the possible economic inefficiency of its future 
members. The community, no less than the individual, 
is interested in the question of ability to earn an honest 
living. The economic unfit sooner or later become a 
public charge. They recruit the criminal class, con- 
stitute the great army of the unemployed in times of 
economic stress, make up the large number of those 
who are constantly on the verge of want, and consti- 
tute finally a burden on society of enormous propor- 
tions. 

Marked progress has been made in recent years Asa means 
both in the amount of aid given to these unfortu- of P rotection 
nates and in methods of administration. Legal and 
extra-legal organizations have reached a high degree 
of efficiency. We point with pride to these worthy 
achievements, and rightly so. They are among the 
outstanding characteristics of our civilization. The 
manifestation of such social attitudes and the intelli- 
gent methods employed in giving concrete expression 
thereto, deserve high commendation. Nevertheless, 
however worthy the endeavor, it constitutes an enor- 
mous social burden. The increased and increasing 
burden is no doubt due in part to the fact that we are 
caring more adequately than ever before for the de- 
pendent classes. It is equally certain, on the other 
hand, that the difficulty of adjustment to economic 
conditions on the part of the individual is constantly 



38 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Asa 

means of 
promoting 
economic 
interests 



Importance 
of intelli- 
gent choice 
of occupa- 
tion 



becoming more serious. Concentration in industry, 
specialization in occupation, and rapid changes in 
methods of production, make this inevitable. But 
whether all of these causes or none of them contrib- 
ute to the situation, the fact remains that we have 
with us the great army of the unfit. And how to 
reduce the number enrolled therein and not how to 
provide temporarily for them, is the ultimate problem. 

On the constructive side, the community is no less 
interested. To reduce the number of social debtors 
is only half the problem. The other half is to trans- 
form as many as possible of these into social creditors. 
The individual who contributes no more than he 
receives, who only "breaks even," is not a contributor 
to economic welfare except in a negative sense. When 
reckonings are finally made he is in reality still a so- 
cial debtor because he makes no positive contribution. 
Society is interested in increasing to the largest possi- 
ble extent the number of those who are positive con- 
tributors to its economic welfare. The high school 
is the means upon which society has a right to place 
a large share of responsibility for accomplishing this 
end. 

The question of the individual's intelligence regard- 
ing occupational activities in general is also a matter 
of social concern. Matters of choice to suit the indi- 
vidual interests and capacities, and of proper distribu- 
tion of workers in relation to social demands, are 
questions in which the community is vitally interested. 
If choices are made in ignorance, both individuals and 
society suffer. The policy of delaying choice beyond 
the period of high school life or even beyond college 



DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING 39 

graduation may have some justification. But the 
theory or practice of withholding information concern- 
ing the nature and meaning of occupational activities 
is indefensible. Choice may be deferred, but when 
made it should be done with as full knowledge as is 
possible to secure. Society no less than the individual 
is interested in having this achieved. Vocational mis- 
fits swell the army of the unfit to serious proportions. 
The unequal distribution of workers constitutes a 
menace to regularity of employment and to stability 
of production. Knowledge of economic opportunities 
and demands should be made possible for every youth 
in the land. What agencies has the community upon 
which it can rely for preparation for vocational activi- 
ties? The apprentice system, so long depended upon, 
is no longer in vogue. The home, from time imme- 
morial a center of economic activity, has ceased largely 
so to be. 

The decline of these as means of vocational instruc- Education 
tion has been so rapid that we have as yet scarcely ^defo™" 
realized the importance and necessity of educational c nan ges in 

industrial 

readjustments. The causes which have operated to life 
bring about these changes we need not enter into. 
They have apparently done their work completely 
and permanently. The factory, widely diversified 
industry, the minute division of labor, mechanical 
invention, have ushered in a new economic order. 
With the going of the old order of things have gone 
old methods of preparation for vocational activities. 
These will not return, and we could not use them if 
they did. They were inadequate and would be still 
more so now because the training never included 



4Q 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



High school 
or special 
type of 
school 



Majority of 
communi- 
ties cannot 
support two 
types of 
schools 



preparation for intelligent choice of occupation as well 
as preparation in the technique of the trade itself. 
It can scarcely be said that the apprentice chose 
the vocation. The choice was made for him and his 
apprenticeship served only to perfect him in the req- 
uisite skill for his work. The home with its re- 
stricted environment and stern necessities did no 
more than this and even in less degree. The needs 
of the individual and the interests of the community 
demand more than this. An educational institution 
of some kind must perform this highly important 
function. 

The question here arises whether we shall organize 
the high school so that it will provide for vocational 
training and guidance or whether we shall set up a 
special type of school. Some would choose the latter 
because they feel that the former alternative would 
interfere with what they conceive to be the proper 
work of the high school. They conceive the proper 
aim of the high school to be limited by opportunity to 
gain a " liberal" education. This aim, they hold, 
would be interfered with in the high school by an 
attempt to render young people intelligent regarding 
the nature and requirements of vocational activities. 
If the community is to provide such opportunity, in 
their view it should be done in a special school. 

Some objections to the special school for vocational 
training will be pointed out. In the first place very 
few communities can afford to institute and main- 
tain two types of secondary schools. Education is a 
worthy object and we can well afford to spend more 
money for it than we are now doing, but there is a 



DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING 41 

limit beyond which communities cannot go. Legal 
restrictions obtain in many states and even if these 
were removed, financial limitations still remain. The 
limited number of pupils of high school age in the 
majority of communities would render division undesir- 
able. The advantage of number up to a certain point 
should be sought in order to permit such type of 
organization as will result in proper social environ- 
ment. Except in the larger commercial and indus- 
trial centers, for obvious reasons, we must choose what 
kind of school we shall have and rely upon it to provide 
adequate educational opportunity for all. 

It is extremely doubtful whether a special type of And they 
school would be desirable even if it were possible. un desirabie 
It is probable that in centers of large population such 
type of school is necessary to meet highly specialized 
demands. Whether this be true or not will not be 
discussed. The fact remains that the secondary school 
of whatever type should do more for the adolescent 
than was accomplished by the apprentice system or 
by the home, even if it should do this in a more com- 
plete way. Vocational efficiency, however adequately^ 
it may be insured, is not the only sort of efficiency 
necessary to the individual and to society as welly 
The needs and capacities of the individual will be 
only partially provided for by a highly specialized 
environment within the school. The environment 
must be complex and include a relatively wide range 
of social stimuli if preparation is to be made for ad- 
equate appreciation of the demands of a complex 
community environment and the development of cor- 
responding powers to meet these demands. A highly 



42 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Various 
needs of 
adolescents 
to be taken 
into account 



A final 
objection 
to special 
types of 
schools 



specialized type of school, furnishing of necessity a 
limited environment, will not provide a sufficiently 
wide range of opportunity for modes of experience 
necessary to the needs of high school students. 

The segregation of one class of our young people in 
a school offering opportunity only for development 
of proper vocational attitudes and something in the 
way of preparation for vocational activity, and segre- 
gation of the other class in a school offering no such 
opportunity, is wholly undesirable. A highly special- 
ized intellectual environment in the school is quite as 
narrow and no less indefensible from a pedagogical point 
of view than a highly vocational one. To deny within 
the school to the boys and girls who will not become 
industrial workers, the opportunity for the develop- 
ment of rational attitudes toward the great work-a-day 
world and for the cultivation of intelligent sympathies 
for those who constitute the very foundation of our 
civilization, is nothing short of educational folly. The 
individuals themselves will be handicapped by any 
such policy, no matter in what name it be conceived 
or upon what grounds it be defended. Any successful 
attempt thus to limit the educational opportunities 
of those enrolled in our secondary schools would but 
result to their incalculable loss. 

The upbuilding and maintenance of American de- 
mocracy means the democratization of American youth. 
Class distinction in education in our secondary schools 
will mean the absence of mutual understanding and 
the lack of common social ideals so necessary to intelli- 
gent cooperation. Our youth must abide together 
in an educational environment that will result in such 



DEMANDS FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING 43 

understanding and promote such ideals. If we would 
educate for democracy our educational organization 
must be democratic. The threatened social cleavage 
into classes favored by opportunity and other classes 
to whom opportunity is denied, requires an educational 
policy that will aid in welding together all elements 
of society. 



CHAPTER V 



Problem of 

rightly 

employing 

leisure 

time 



More en- 
lightened 
view con- 
cerning play 
activities 



PREPARATION FOR LEISURE OCCUPATION 

If we inquire further into the peculiar characteris- 
tics of the adolescent, we find that one of his perplexing 
problems is how to employ rightly his leisure time. 
Old modes of employment are largely discarded be- 
cause they are unsuited to the rising social con- 
sciousness. The new individuality is characterized by 
certain social attributes which do not manifest them- 
selves in any marked way until this period of life. 
The play spirit is still dominant, and the recognition 
of this fact is necessary in any system of education 
that is comprehensive enough to care for the whole 
on-going life of youth. In fact such recognition is 
necessary to any sort of sympathetic understanding 
and appreciation of the essential characteristics of 
adolescent life. 

Play is no longer regarded by intelligent people as 
a troublesome form of idleness indulged in by children 
because they do not know any better. It is now recog- 
nized as an important factor in the education of the 
child, although it has taken a long time to arrive at 
this sane and pedagogically sound conclusion. For- 
tunately we have arrived and this more enlightened 
view concerning the significance of play activities 
furnishes a new basis for the consideration of educa- 
tional values. Parents and teachers recognize that play 



PREPARATION FOR LEISURE OCCUPATION 45 

represents a healthful form of activity and that it is a 
necessary propaedeutic to work. "All work and no 
play makes Jack a dull boy" is a familiar phrase that 
expresses our meaning. 

It is necessary for us to relate play not only to work Mutual 
but to life in general. Work occupies a large place fwork 
in our lives and ought so to do. But it is not all of and P la y 
life. It is not even the end toward which all prepara- 
tion should be made. Play bears a functional relation 
to work. On the other hand, work bears . reciprocal 
relation to play. The relation is mutual and should 
be so regarded. And these activities in turn are 
functionally related to life in its larger and completer 
aspects. Play may save Jack from becoming a dull 
boy, but if this is all it accomplishes it has not ful- 
filled its mission. Unorganized and undirected it may 
lead to results quite as undesirable as dullness. It 
may lead to evil associations and to the formation of 
habits that will eventually defeat the ends of educa- 
tion as related both to the efficiency of the individual 
and to the welfare of the community. The play im- The larger 
pulse is one of the most useful impulses if properly significance 
directed. Uncontrolled and undirected it may result, 
and frequently does result, in incalculable harm. We 
are beginning to see that play activities are not con- 
fined to the period of childhood, and it is with the edu- 
cational significance of this fact that we have to deal 
in this discussion. 

The play impulse is carried over into the adolescent The 
period, and all that has been said above is applicable ^ leisure 
to the problem of secondary education. There are, occupation 
however, some important distinctions which need 



4 6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Old modes 
of leisure 
occupation 
not 
adequate 



emphasis. In the first place, the term play as usually 
associated with the activities of childhood is not ade- 
quate in scope. Play as set over against work refers 
to those activities whose value to the participant 
lies in the pleasure of the activities themselves and 
not in any end sought. The adolescent is no longer 
satisfied with merely this. He has begun to set up 
more or less consciously certain ends looking toward 
self-realization, involving motives which lie beyond the 
region of activities for the sake of themselves. The 
merely physical element is now reinforced by the 
mental element, largely emotional, which must be 
taken into account. The adolescent is developing 
well-defined mental attitudes toward his social envi- 
ronment which find expression in various forms of 
what may be termed leisure occupation. 

Old modes of expression are discredited in the mind 
of the adolescent because he somehow feels superior 
to them. This feeling is no doubt in part due to the 
causes referred to in the preceding paragraph, and 
in part due to the influence of his social environment. 
The causes of change are both psychological and social, 
but whatever they are or which is the most potent, is 
not important. The change of attitude has come and 
with it we have to deal. And how to deal with the 
situation constitutes an educational problem. Teachers 
know this well enough, and parents are even more 
intimately familiar with the fact, although neither 
the school nor the home is at present attempting in 
any adequate way to solve the problem. 

It is scarcely possible to over-emphasize the im- 
portance of the matter of proper employment of 



PREPARATION FOR LEISURE OCCUPATION 47 

leisure time on the part of our youth. Within very Demand 
wide limits, at least, it is safe to say that no voca- ^leisure* 106 
tional occupation leads to vice or crime or indolence, occupation 
The vicious, the criminal, and the loafer are the prod- 
uct of leisure employment to an astonishing degree. 
The factory and the sweat-shop where many of our 
youth work, deserve all the attention they are receiv- 
ing. But what about the saloon, the dance-hall, the 
pool-room, the alleys and vacant lots, and other places 
where multitudes of our youth play? Our policy in 
the former case is corrective because it is constructive. 
Our policy in regard to the latter, if indeed we have 
any, is scarcely corrective at all because it is almost 
wholly negative. None would be so foolish as to 
assume that many boys and girls will not of necessity 
engage in some sort of gainful occupation. Who 
of us dare be so blind, so indifferent to the truth, as 
to hold that all boys and girls will not engage in some 
sort of leisure occupation. Not occasionally nor sea- 
sonally will they do this, but daily throughout the 
whole of their developing lives. 

But what about the means of caring for the youth Situation 
of our communities? What sort of attitudes are they fj^ ns( 
developing toward the meaning and the function of educational 

problem 

leisure occupation? And again, what is the character 
of the environment in which these attitudes are formed? 
If they are not intelligent about the harmful effects of 
certain forms of leisure occupation, whose is the fault? 
The conditions implied in these questions present a 
situation the significance of which should be more 
fully appreciated, and the attempt to meet it will be 
vastly more adequate when we once realize the large 



48 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

social import of these questions. When the training 
of youth bears upon any social situation there must 
arise at that point an educational problem. And it 
is so here. If the community is interested in how the 
youth employ their leisure time, the question becomes 
a matter of educational concern. The position taken 
with respect to training for efficiency in leisure occu- 
pation cannot be different from that taken in regard 
to vocational efficiency or efficiency of any other type. 
One's attitude toward leisure occupation is not less 
significant than his attitude toward occupational 
activity in general. If leisure time has no value, if 
it is regarded as waste time, then why should not 
one employ it as he will? We cannot expect youth 
rightly to employ leisure time until something has 
been done by way of inducing them to assume an 
intelligent attitude toward it. And if leisure time 
is of so little importance that no preparation is neces- 
sary for it, we can hardly expect that intelligent use 
will be made of it. 
N ^ atlve f The school too frequently discounts leisure occupa- 
the school tion by giving no attention to it except of a negative 
kind. Too often nothing is done except to eliminate 
it as far as possible. Such an attitude implies that it 
has no place within the range of school activities and 
that the school ought to, as far as possible, through 
the assignment of home tasks, eliminate such occupa- 
tion altogether. We have been too largely concerned 
with attempting to get rid of a situation rather than 
with making an intelligent, constructive attempt to 
deal with it. This negative attitude on our part not 
only does not lead us anywhere, but creates an intol- 



PREPARATION FOR LEISURE OCCUPATION 49 

erable situation within the school which fosters dis- 
content with or indifference toward the work of the 
school. 
A more intelligent view is needed concerning the This must 

trivc W3.v 

breadth of the function of the secondary school. This t o a 
can be secured only by going back to first principles constructive 
and securing proper bases for our concept of the mean- 
ing of secondary education. The needs and capaci- 
ties of the adolescent and the social demands alone 
form proper bases. We are inclined too much to 
theorize about human nature and are not enough en- 
gaged in dealing with it as it is. Reflection can but 
impress one with this fact. The adolescent impulse 
to seek expression through leisure occupation is in no 
sense an abnormality. It is not an indication of 
depravity. The difficulty is that we confuse modes 
of expression which he sometimes employs with the 
impulse itself, forgetting that while the impulse is 
inherent, modes of expression are acquired. The im- 
pulse may need more or less inhibition, but its supreme 
need is direction. Whatever may be our belief con- 
cerning the teleological theory of play, the importance 
of the modes of play in terms of fife and character 
cannot fail to impress us. 

Viewing the situation from the standpoint of the The inter- 
problem of the community as related to the welfare community 
of its youth, we can hardly fail to see the significance 
involved. In our effort to prepare young people for 
participation in the affairs of the community in the 
future, we too frequently ignore their presence in the 
community of the present. They are as truly a part of 
the social structure in the present as they will ever be 



5° 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Present 
means for 
guidance 
inadequate 



in the future. And some of the most difficult prob- 
lems of the community arise out of this fact. If we 
could imagine a community without young people, 
we should have a very different social structure from 
what we now have. The relations which these young 
people bear to one another, their mutual relations 
with adult members of the community, and the rela- 
tion which they bear to the children of the commu- 
nity, all give rise to problems of profound significance. 
These young people are a part of the social structure of 
every community and they must be taken into account. 
They must be provided with opportunity for expres- 
sion adequate to their needs. Leisure occupation will 
engage a relatively large part of their time. What 
means are provided through organization for this 
demand? Is the home adequate to the task? Can 
the churches undertake it successfully? Can the local 
! government be depended upon? What about the suc- 
cess of voluntary organizations, clubs, associations, 
guilds of one sort or another? The answer to all 
these questions is the same. The organized means are 
not meeting the situation, and for this there are well- 
defined reasons. There are certain limitations upon 
these institutions outside of the school which make 
it impossible for them to provide for the employment 
of leisure time in any adequate way. In the first place, 
there are physical limitations. Lack of buildings, 
grounds, equipment, is in itself sufficient to account 
for failure. There are social limitations in the absence 
of group life which cannot be overcome. The lack 
of adequately trained people to direct and control 
these activities needs no discussion. Witness the 



PREPARATION FOR LEISURE OCCUPATION 51 

repeated failures of well-intentioned efforts to meet Futility of 
this crying need of every community. One instance ™gankation 
of an effort of this kind may be cited. In a certain 
Western town the people became interested in the 
problem before us and proceeded in the customary 
way to solve it. A large hall was rented and paid for 
by interested parties, and one of the citizens volun- 
teered his services to direct the experiment. Every- 
thing was lacking, however, but good intentions. 
There was no well-defined aim, no adequate means, 
no trained service to direct and control. Failure was 
but another witness to good intentions and bad 
judgment. 

The school, on the other hand, can be so organized The high 
as to reduce if not entirely remove the limitations which only efficient 
have spelled disaster for all these sporadic attempts a e en cy 
to solve this perplexing community problem. Would 
this be within the proper province of the school. This 
can best be answered by asking another question. Is 
it within the province of the community to exercise 
intelligent and organized control over the leisure occu- 
pations of its youth? If this question is answered in 
the negative, there is of course no call for further dis- 
cussion. But if the question is answered in the affirma- 
tive, then we cannot avoid the conclusion that the 
high school is the only institution upon which reliance 
can be placed to perform this necessary and highly 
important service. The fact is so apparent that it is 
the proper function of the high school to care for the 
whole on-going life of youth that no argument at this 
point seems necessary. The answer that the school 
in the past has not performed such duty or that it is 



52 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

not properly organized to perform it now, is avoiding 
the question. It is only an evidence that the com- 
munity is not awake to what the school ought to do 
and not informed concerning what it can do. 
The problem Turning now to the consideration of the future de- 

in the light . 

of future mands which will be made upon our young people, it 
demands j s i m p 0r ^ an t to inquire whether this type of education 
will be useful in relation to these demands. Does the 
way in which adults employ leisure time have any par- 
ticular significance with reference to the welfare of the 
individual or of the community? Does the manner in 
which parents spend leisure time affect the interests 
of the home? If the father spends eight hours at work, 
two at meals, and eight in sleep, is it a matter of any 
concern to the integrity and usefulness of the home as 
a social institution when and how he spends the re- 
maining hours of the twenty-four? Is it a matter 
of economic concern how and where workers spend 
their leisure time? Does leisure give rise to any 
serious problems as related to civic control? Are 
there any great moral issues growing out of the manner 
in which men and women spend their leisure time? 
These are some of the questions to which intelligent 
attention must be directed if we would understand the 
importance of leisure occupation in its contribution to 
the complexity and meaning of modern community 
life. Not only is the matter of leisure occupation at 
present a problem of serious concern, but we are engaged 
in efforts of various kinds which, if successful, render 
the problem still more serious and complex. We are 
designedly engaged in attempts to shorten hours of 
labor and thereby insure to the worker more leisure 



PREPARATION FOR LEISURE OCCUPATION 53 

time. Labor organizations and legislators and public- 
spirited citizens, singly and in association with others, 
are all engaged in this effort. Even our education is 
contributing to the achievement of this end. We are 
endeavoring to increase the industrial efficiency of 
the individual not only because we want him to be 
able to produce more but also because we wish him 
to be able to produce it in less time. We want to 
shorten hours of labor as well as to increase output. 

For some of the evidences of what is actually hap- More leisure 
pening we need only cite labor laws, limitation of J^era and 

hours of work, compulsory school attendance, half its signffi- 

c&nce 
holidays on full pay in certain occupations. These 

are the facts, and we assume that they are all signs of 
progress. They are all regarded as evidence of en- 
lightened social conscience and worthy social achieve- 
ment. More leisure time for the individual inures 
to his advantage and to the general well-being of the 
community, is the assumption. The validity of this 
assumption, however, admits of grave doubt if we 
ignore the importance of the question as to how this 
larger amount of leisure time will be spent. The fact 
is that whether leisure results in good to individuals 
and to communities depends upon the attitudes and 
interests and capabilities of those who engage in 
it. Values attach here and ignorance cannot appre- 
ciate these values. Knowledge and training alone 
can be relied upon to secure proper employment of 
leisure time. 

The history of civilization reveals nothing more Leisure 
clearly than it does the fact that leisure time makes ^sodd 
for enlightenment and culture and progress on the one progress 



54 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

hand, and for degradation and vice and decay on the 
other. The manner in which it has been employed 
has always and everywhere determined which of these 
two conditions resulted. Art, music, and literature 
are its products. Gladiatorial combats, bull-fights, and 
shameless national vices are monuments to its degraded 
use. The facts are familiar enough. The question^ is 
whether we shall take heed and constitute the school 
the greater socializing institution where our youth may 
receive adequate preparation for intelligent partici- 
pation in the varied and complex life of our social 
democracy. 



CHAPTER VI 

INSTITUTIONAL AND OTHER TYPES OF SOCIAL 
EFFICIENCY 

Vocational activity constitutes but one of the Modes of 
modes through which one gives expression to his expression 
interests, makes trial of his capacities, and secures for other than 
himself the satisfaction of his needs. It is also but 
one of the modes which the individual employs in 
rendering service to the community in which he lives. 
There are other modes of expression which we may 
term institutional activities that are equally impor- 
tant. To say that any one of these is more important 
than another would be untrue. Vocational efficiency 
and preparation for leisure occupation are important, 
but to neglect training for participation in other lines 
of social activities would result in the failure of the 
school to perform its full duty to the community. 
Complexity of community life calls for corresponding 
complexity in the aims and means of education. We 
need to have the facts presented by the specialist 
who through training and experience is able to get 
them all before us. But without proper balance 
of judgment as regards the relative importance of 
social demands, we shall emphasize one duty of 
the school to the neglect of others equally important. 
This leads to fads and foibles, results in lack of well- 
balanced educational policy, involves waste of time 
and opportunity, and ends in discrediting the school 



56 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Adolescent 

social 

interests 



Efficiency 
for partici- 
pation in 
community 
life 



in the eyes of those who support it and have a right to 
expect from it adequate preparation of their children 
for intelligent participation in the affairs of the com- 
munity. 

Fortunately the adolescent has social interests which 
can be seized upon by the school in its efforts to aid 
him in making preparation for participation, present 
and future, in community life. These interests are 
even more immediate and are seeking modes of expres- 
sion more particularly in the present than those which 
have to do with vocational occupation. Problems of 
social adjustment and control are to the youth present 
ones and are demanding solution. They are problems 
whose source is within the self — the new self in which 
resides the social attributes that now begin to mani- 
fest themselves in divers ways. The adolescent period 
above all other life periods, is the one in which the 
socializing process is at its height, and whether it will 
be accomplished well or ill is a matter of great impor- 
tance. New criteria for social judgments are sought, 
new standards of conduct are demanded, and new 
modes of social expression are imperative. Authority 
is questioned, old standards are abandoned, and old 
modes of social response are not adequate. 

The term " institutional efficiency" was employed 
in a previous paragraph for the sake of convenience. 
It is a correct term as far as it goes, but it is inadequate 
to describe the situation in any complete way if used 
in its restricted sense. Efficiency for participation 
in community life more nearly states the case, and the 
word institutional will be used in this broad sense. 
The term civic efficiency, sometimes employed, is 



SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 57 

entirely too restricted in its scope to include social 
activities of extreme importance. The state is one 
of the institutions in which the individual must partici- 
pate and is a very important one. But to narrow our 
preparation to this one kind of participation would 
leave out much that should receive primary considera- 
tion. There need to be taken into account the various 
points of contact with one's social environment and the 
different aspects of the community life in which in- 
telligent participation is necessary. 

The matter of rights and responsibilities is an im- importance 
portant one, not only in civic relations but also in all participate 
social relations. The individual apart from its social Asocial 

endeavor 

environment is a myth. What he does for his group 
and what the group does for him constitute the "give 
and take" of life. The anti-social individual is a 
criminal. The unsocial one is an outcast. The activ- 
ities carried on in a community through group organi- 
zation are many and varied. But the single purpose 
back of all these activities is the betterment of the 
group or the community as a whole. The ability and 
the disposition to cooperate with others are required 
of everyone who would have any part in community 
life. Many worthy undertakings are carried on by 
voluntary organizations. Reforms of various kinds 
are sought through the agency of these extra-legal 
organizations, and preparation for participation in 
these undertakings is necessary. 

The home cannot perform this function in any com- Home does 
plete way. We have a right to expect large things adequate^ 
from the home in the education of the child, but we social 
must not expect the impossible. The fact is, the me nt 



58 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

home is not organized to care for the social needs or to 
develop the social capacities of the adolescent. Among 
other things, it cannot furnish a sufficiently varied 
social environment. In reality it would be less a 
task for it to undertake to supply an adequate intel- 
lectual environment for the education of the youth 
than to supply an adequate social environment. We 
readily concede its inability to provide the former, 
and with even more unanimity we ought to agree to 
the impossibility of the latter. People constitute 
the chief sources of stimuli, and social organizations of 
one kind and another furnish the chief opportunity 
for response. And we must look to the school not 
only for the intellectual but also for the social en- 
vironment in which adequate preparation may be 
secured for intelligent participation in community life. 
Preparation j n discussing efficiency for participation in institu- 
efficiency tional affairs our attention is quite naturally first 
directed to the question of civic efficiency. Our schools 
have always given much attention, in theory at least, 
to training for civic efficiency. The obligation to pre- 
pare for citizenship has always been conceded to rest 
heavily upon the school. To what extent our educa- 
tional practice has been in accord with our theory might 
be a matter of some dispute. However short our schools 
may have fallen in measuring up to this demand, it has 
always been an important one and is becoming more 
insistent. Rapidly changing conditions in social life, 
the phenomenal growth of great centers of population, 
the great diversity of interests, the passing of the 
frontier, the rapid increase in population, have operated 
to create great burdens for the state. 



SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 59 

These changed and changing conditions have had increasing 

~ - . importance 

many important results. One of these is the increase of govern- 
of the duties which the government is called upon jj^Sms 
to perform. Governmental control has been greatly 
increased even within the last decade. It is of course 
unnecessary to say that just in the degree in which the 
people rely upon the government for social control 
does its importance as a social agent increase. If it 
is to perform only a few functions, success on the one 
hand will not contribute so largely to social welfare, 
and on the other hand failure will not be so great a 
calamity. If its functions are very numerous, and 
if in addition to exercising police power it attempts to 
enter into the regulation and control of private enter- 
prises, we have a very different situation. 

As has been implied in a previous paragraph, the Demand for 
great social and material changes which have come spirited 
about are resulting in a change in the conception of new social 
the meaning of government. The old, rather naive 
idea that the purpose of government was merely 
to see to it that the individual rights were not to be 
interfered with, is passing. It was born of the struggle 
of the eighteenth century against tyranny and oppres- 
sion. The new conception is that government is 
rather a name for certain great social functions which 
the people in a collective capacity are undertaking to 
perform for the larger good of the whole. This is call- 
ing for a new civic spirit and for new social means 
through which the ends may be accomplished. But 
for these new demands made upon the average citizen, 
the nature and purpose of the school would not be 
affected. Increased intelligence concerning the right- 



6o 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Relation of 
government 
to social 
democracy 



New mean- 
ing of 
popular 
government 



ful functions of government and the means of securing 
conditions whereby these may be successfully per- 
formed, is the,' precise thing that is placing the heavier 
and more important burden upon the school. 

The goal toward which American civilization is 
striving is a democracy. This of course is a larger 
thing than political democracy. But government 
as a means of control will have an increasing func- 
tional relation to this achievement. The denser popu- 
lation, and the multiplication of interests will require 
this. That particular type of individual liberty which 
our government in its earlier history sought to secure 
to the individual, if his freedom is to be maintained, 
must be transformed into an even larger liberty achieved 
through a more complete functioning in all social rela- 
tions. Not in the absence of social responsibility, but 
in the increased power to perform his social duties 
will the citizen of this great social democracy find his 
largest freedom. It follows that since government 
will be increasingly important, that in a democratic 
form of government the individuals must perform 
their duties more intelligently. 

One of the significant signs of the times is the larger 
responsibility for government being assumed by the 
people themselves. That degree of direct participa- 
tion which we have held throughout our history to 
be suitable only to small governmental units, we are 
now applying to the larger units as well. Whether the 
theory of government by representation, government 
by "wise men" as it were, was sound or not, we are 
abandoning it at the present time. The ballot, whose 
former purpose was simply to select men, is now 



SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 61 

coming to be employed to a considerable degree as a 
direct means to determine governmental policy. This 
not only calls for a higher degree of intelligence on 
the part of the voter, but for a much wider range of 
intelligence. And one of the direct aims of education 
must be to promote this type of intelligence. 

There is no direct relation in this country between Problem 
the work of the public school and the church. In o"separ°a^ 
European countries this is not generally true. There ti ° no * 
religious instruction is given in public schools and it school 
is frequently the case that the church itself exercises 
control over the instruction given. This was true in 
this country in colonial times. But our policy of com- 
plete separation of church and state has also resulted 
in the severing of nearly all of the direct connections 
between the school and the church. Whether this is 
desirable or not is not open to discussion here. We are 
simply dealing with the fact in order to point out one of 
the very marked differences existing between our system 
of public education and those of European countries. 
And further to point out that, however desirable such 
separation may be, it gives rise to a problem which 
after all may be more serious than it appears upon its 
face. 

Religion is one of the very important social assets Religion a 
of any people. No reference is intended to dogma or ^ciaT 
sectarianism of any kind. The incontrovertible fact c o ncern 
is that religion is a valuable social asset. And a type 
of education which is irreligious, or even wholly non- 
religious, fails in making its full contribution to society. 
It would be unfortunate in stating our educational aim 
and in choosing our educational means if we were to 



62 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The school 
must take 
this into 
account 



Problems 
arising out 
of changes 
in the home 



be wholly unmindful of two outstanding facts. First, 
that the adolescent period, more than any other 
period of life, is one in which the individual is most 
susceptible to religious influences. The records relat- 
ing to this matter show beyond any question that a far 
greater number definitely ally themselves with church 
organizations during this period than at any other 
period of life. The second fact is that society as a 
whole is concerned in the part which the church of the 
future shall play. 

The functioning of this social institution is not a mat- 
ter of less interest to society in general than is that of 
any other of our institutions. The church has through- 
out the centuries maintained its elementary and second- 
ary schools and the relation that these schools sustained 
to the church was fully recognized. Now one branch 
of the church, at least, has ceased almost entirely to 
maintain any other than higher institutions. We are 
not concerned here with the problem which this con- 
stitutes for the church as such. We are simply point- 
ing out the facts and raising the question from the 
point of view of social welfare — what will be the effect 
upon this great social institution, if the instruction in 
our public schools should be irreligious or even non- 
religious? Nor is this statement to be interpreted as 
implying that it is either one or the other. The em- 
phasis is that it must be neither. 

The home is the greatest social asset of a people. If 
it is regarded otherwise than this, there is a reckoning 
ahead. So self-evident are these propositions that 
argument would be superfluous. The American home 
has been our proud boast and rightfully so. But the 



SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 63 

conditions which give to it its peculiar force and 
functions are passing. The economic bond is no 
longer of the same character and power. As popula- 
tion has become more dense and means of communi- 
cation have improved, the former isolation of the 
home has ceased. All these changes are no doubt 
desirable, but out of them arises the necessity for tak- 
ing into account what has happened. In the degree 
that the strength of these old bonds has been lessened, 
other means must be substituted for insuring the 
integrity of the home. 

Citations of the mistakes of ancient peoples is an Results of 
old method of uttering warnings against present tend- j fl ^ °° er 
encies. But in spite of the antiquity of the method functions 
it is not without value. The taking over by the school performed 
of things previously done by the home has been in by the home 
other civilizations a contributing cause to the loosening 
of domestic bonds. This result followed not alone 
because of what was included in the educational 
aim but also because of what was not included. 
It was due not only to the functions performed by 
the school but also to the failure to perform certain 
other functions. The experiment of the school in 
taking over important activities performed by the 
home without at the same time making provision for 
strengthening domestic bonds is not a new one. It 
has been tried and has failed. If there is anywhere 
lurking in our minds the error of assuming that the 
home is a less valuable asset than it has been in the 
past, that the domestic bonds are to be less numerous 
and less binding, our experiment will result as the 
others have done. 



64 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

The prob- This topic will be discussed in more detail in a later 

lem of the * 

home a chapter dealing with the education of girls. But 
problem anything like adequate treatment of the subject re- 
quires more than a mere discussion of the home from 
the point of view of women's contribution to it. The 
problem of the home is by no means exclusively a 
woman's problem. It is a fundamental social problem, 
and the attitude and the efficiency of all the parties to 
the domestic relations count in determining how suc- 
cessfully the home is making its social contribution. 
The promotion of intelligent interest in the home 
through a proper correlation of the work of the home 
and of the school is an important duty of any efficient 
educational institution. 
Misceiia- Functioning in a social process, however, is not 

neous social ° . 

activities confined, using terms in rather a strict sense, to mere 
participation in institutional life. Social control is 
exercised and social welfare promoted through various 
types of organizations both for men and women. 
These organizations are playing a larger and larger 
part in our community life. The duties which they 
undertake to perform, civic and philanthropic, should 
become increasingly important as time goes on. Such 
organizations will depend, however, for their ultimate 
value upon the spirit that prompts the activities and 
upon the means and methods chosen for achieving 
these ends. These organizations are so numerous and 
have such wide range that no enumeration will be 
undertaken. In fact, none is needed because the 
general topic under discussion is a matter of common 
knowledge. The future of these organizations depends 
in no small degree upon our educational aims and 



SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 65 

means. To educate for intelligent participation in 
the work of such organizations is quite as necessary 
as it is to provide vocational training and guidance. 

The demands upon the school in these relations are significance 
increasing because of changed conditions in society. pa^ gof 
Just as the home has changed, so the community as pioneer 
a whole has changed. An eminent student of social 
problems recently said that democracy does not grow 
on bushes any more. This was another way of saying 
that the natural springs of a social democracy are drying 
up. The earlier conditions prevailing of wide-spread 
economic equality, the common struggle to subdue the 
forces of nature, — in short, the comparative pioneer 
conditions everywhere, — were the sources of the spirit, 
were the well-springs of life of a social democracy. 

These conditions have passed or are passing, and Social forces 
what are to be the forces upon which we shall depend m ore the 
in the future? It is no reflection upon the social effi- P rod ^ct of 

. the high 

ciency of those who have had so much to do with rear- school 
ing the structure of American civilization to say that 
the causes of that efficiency are passing. Our ideals 
remain, but they must be renewed and refined and the 
forces to accomplish this task will have to be more 
and more the product of the school. Social forces are 
in the last analysis psychic forces. The control of 
these through definite aims and suitable means con- 
stitutes one of the difficult educational problems. 
The burden rests in large degree upon the high school 
both because the elementary school period is too 
early for effective training and because the very large 
majority of young people will not continue their 
education beyond the high school. 



CHAPTER VII 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 



Demands 
for higher 
education 



High school 
to prepare 
for college 



Mutual 
interests of 
lower and 
higher 
institutions 



The recognized relation that college-bred men and 
women bear to the promotion of social welfare needs 
no comment. The higher education of at least a por- 
tion of the youth of every community is an impera- 
tive social necessity. Trained leadership is essential, 
and the society of the future will in large measure con- 
tinue to look to the higher institutions to furnish such 
leadership. 

Because of this social demand one of the important 
duties of the high school is to prepare students to 
enter college. That the high school has thus far 
devoted too much of its attention to the performance 
of this one duty is readily admitted. And that col- 
lege entrance requirements have been and are yet to 
too large an extent unreasonable, is equally true. But 
in spite of these conditions, since the American high 
school is rapidly supplanting every other type of 
secondary school, it is evident that if young people 
are prepared for college at all, the high school must 
furnish the preparation. 

In view of the importance of this duty of the second- 
ary school, it is desirable to ascertain in a definite way 
what are in reality the mutual interests of the higher and 
lower institutions. Lack of agreement as to these inter- 
ests has been one of the chief causes of the failure to 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 67 

secure agreement between the high schools and colleges 
as regards entrance requirements. The administrators 
of high schools, reluctantly yielding to the demands of 
the college, insist that the kind of preparation required 
by the colleges is not in conformity with the needs 
and interests of high school students. The college 
authorities on their side have insisted and still insist 
that the great majority of students who come from 
the high schools are inadequately prepared for the 
college work. When we find a situation in which all 
parties concerned are dissatisfied, there is need for a 
dispassionate and unbiased inquiry to ascertain the 
grounds for dissatisfaction. Mere demands on the 
part of one type of school or the other, even if acceded 
to, will not settle the question. Only by each school 
taking into account the educational problem of the 
other school can satisfactory relations be established 
and maintained. 

There has been a growing tendency during recent Lack of co- 
years for the high schools to become more and more the^oriTof 
independent, and the colleges have accepted, although the two 
with great reluctance, a type of preparation differing 
considerably from that demanded a decade ago. In 
accepting these changes in the character of the prep- 
aration, the college authorities have quite generally 
insisted that it is not of the right kind and, as an 
earnest of their faith in the old type of preparation, 
they require students to pursue certain lines of work 
in the college which were formerly regarded as pre- 
paratory work. It is a serious question whether the 
greater liberality now manifested by college authorities 
has led to better mutual understanding or to any more 



68 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Difficulties 
in the high 
school 



In the 
college 



unified educational policy taken as a whole. In spite 
of the effort that has been going on for over half a cen- 
tury to articulate successfully the work of the schools, 
the accomplishment of this very necessary undertak- 
ing still remains far from realized. 

There are practical difficulties to be solved on both 
sides of the question. The smaller high schools par- 
ticularly face a difficult problem. In view of the limita- 
tions under which they work, they are unable to meet 
the demands of both the community and the college. 
They must choose between the interests of the ma- 
jority who will not go to college and the minority who 
will go to college. In some measure the interests of 
either the majority or the minority must be sacrificed. 
Even if the minority is accepted by the college, the 
work is carried on under unfavorable conditions be- 
cause of lack of preparation, and the value of the 
college course is greatly lessened. For the student 
to enter college with any considerable number of con- 
ditions to be made up is a serious handicap. One is 
almost persuaded sometimes that some of the students 
who enter thus conditioned had better not enter at 
all. The college is dissatisfied with them and they 
are dissatisfied with the college. They pursue studies 
under compulsion that they avoided taking in the high 
school. They know and every one else knows that 
there is no pedagogical reason why these requirements 
should be made so late in the student's career. 

The college on its side has its problems that are 
quite as difficult as those belonging to the high school. 
The college authorities have set up certain educational 
aims and have chosen what they conceive to be the 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 69 

best means for realizing them. Their courses are 
planned assuming that students will come prepared 
to pursue their work successfully. It is assumed, 
sometimes perhaps quite arbitrarily, that a student 
will be prepared to begin his study of English, mathe- 
matics, language, or whatever it may be, at a given 
point and that he will possess a sufficient mastery of 
the elementary work to enable him to exhibit a reason- 
able degree of efficiency in the higher work. As a 
matter of fact some such assumption has to be made. 
The college, if its work is worth while, must have def- 
inite aims and must be as free to choose the means as 
is the high school. The difficulty arises, however, 
when: the college in exercising this freedom of choice 
does so in the absence of the recognition of the fact 
that its work must be a continuation of what the lower 
schools can, under all the circumstances, be expected 
to do. As an illustration in point, if it should come to 
pass that it would seem best for the high school to offer 
but two years of mathematics instead of three, then 
the college should take this into account and govern 
itself accordingly. While there must continue to be 
a line drawn between preparatory work and the higher 
work, the line must be more or less a shifting one as 
circumstances and conditions change. 

The difficulty in making adjustments on the scholas- Difficulties 
tic side have no doubt been augmented, in part at by^Tureof 
least, by the failure of the college to readjust its own colle g e to 
work with reference to the new social demands made justments 
upon the educated man and woman. The adjustments 
on the part of the lower schools have been far more 
radical and rapid than they have in higher institutions. 



70 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Fitness for 
college in- 
cludes more 
than mere 
scholastic 
preparation 



Social tests 
of efficiency 



The new educational ideals, if they persist, must before 
long exert the same influence upon educational means 
in the higher institutions that they have already ex- 
erted in the secondary school. The colleges have 
increased the number of electives and have in some 
degree modified requirements for graduation. A fur- 
ther modification of educational practice in the colleges 
will result in changes in entrance requirements in the 
direction of allowing the high school greater freedom 
in its work. 

If preparation for college consisted only in meeting 
scholastic requirements for entrance, the problem 
would be far more simple than it is. Fitness for college 
includes very much more than the mere ability to 
present to the college authorities a certificate setting 
forth that a definite number of specified units of work 
has been completed. It involves the ability to par- 
ticipate in a type of social life to be found nowhere 
else in the entire social process. Failures, far too 
numerous in college, are due in large measure not 
to the inability to do the work of the class-room but 
rather in the failure to fit into the college situation. 
The social readjustments that the student has to make 
upon entering college place far greater demands upon 
him and are more severe tests of his fitness than are 
the requirements of the class-room. Even if we were 
to secure perfect agreement so that the college would 
modify its demands in the light of what the high 
schools can reasonably do, and if the latter should 
meet all the requirements of the former, it is doubtful 
whether the large number of failures in the freshman 
year would be lessened in any considerable degree. It 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 71 

is necessary for us to give consideration to some of 
the causes of failure other than the mere lack of 
scholastic requirements for entrance. 

The general cause of the difficulty that the student College has 
finds in adjusting himself to the new situation is the methods of 
very different sort of supervision to which he is subject. su P ef vi sion 
The student is not only away from home and from its 
influences, but he also finds his school environment 
of a very different nature than that to which he was 
accustomed in the high school. The transition from 
a situation in which supervision is exercised more 
directly and is extended to details, to one in which 
supervision is more general and indirect, constitutes a 
very radical change. Some of the direct causes of 
his failure to measure up to the requirements of his 
new situation are traceable to this change in modes 
of supervision. 

The college authorities say that many of the high students 
school students have not formed proper habits of acquired in 
study, and assign this as the principal cause of failure. !" g ^ sch ° o1 
This claim no doubt has some validity. But any to meet 
intimate knowledge concerning the conditions in the eman s 
high school, forces one to conclude that high school 
students are generally good students and perform their 
work with a reasonable degree of efficiency. They 
have built up useful habits of study, but they have 
been acquired in the presence of stimuli which are 
partly lacking in the college environment. These 
stimuli, as has already been indicated, have been 
determined by the kind of supervision which is exer- 
cised in the high school. For example, the preparation 
of the student's lessons is made in part, at least, in 



72 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Readjust- 
ments called 
for on part 
of high 
school 



On the part 
of the 
college 



study halls under the direction of the teacher. And 
further, the close relation which exists between the 
school and the home enables the school authorities 
to know in a definite way how the student's time 
is employed outside of school hours. 

The remedy for this failure of students to adapt 
themselves to the work of the college is a modifica- 
tion of methods of supervision in both the college and 
the high school. The latter should take into account 
more fully the nature of the college environment in 
this respect and have as one of its aims to build up 
habits of study under conditions more similar to 
those obtaining in the college. It is evident if the 
chief stimulus to study is the teacher, or even if the 
teacher enters to a considerable extent into the stimu- 
lus situation, that the absence of the teacher will 
result in the necessity of supplying other stimuli. 
Supervision should be less direct and less in detail as 
the student in the high school advances in his work. 
This is equally true concerning the supervision of the 
work of the student who will not go to college. A 
modification of methods of supervision is desirable 
for the students who will enter immediately into the 
life of the community as well as for those who will 
go to college. 

The college on its side has a duty to perform. The 
assumption that a student in the freshman year in 
college differs essentially from the student in the last 
year of the high school has no foundation. If the 
college would recognize the conditions under which 
the high school student necessarily works and would 
plan its supervision in view of these conditions, the 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 73 

situation would be greatly improved. Some colleges 
have recognized the importance of this and have insti- 
tuted a plan whereby freshmen assemble once a week 
for instruction relative to the changed conditions into 
which they have come. This effort is commendable, 
but it is not sufficient to meet the demand. An im- 
portant step forward will be taken when the colleges 
have more successfully modified the environment and 
have made it more in accord with the previous experi- 
ence of the students. If both the high school and the 
college should change their environmental conditions 
as suggested, neither would have to make so radical 
a change as would appear at first thought. 

As a part of the same situation just under discus- Radical dif- 
sion, the failure of the student on entering college to ^"socia? 
make his social adjustments, in the narrower sense, and life o f the 
to gain control over his surroundings, is quite as tions 
noticeable as the failure to meet the requirements of 
the class-room work. This difficulty also arises be- 
cause of the radical difference between the social life 
of the high school and that of the college. As a rule, 
in the average high school the social life is very simple 
and but little opportunity is given for participation 
in social affairs. Social activities also lack proper 
organization and control, and in consequence the 
student is wanting in the type of social efficiency that 
the college demands. For the most part the high 
school is to him simply a place where he prepares and 
recites his lessons. When he goes to college, about 
the first thing he encounters is the complex social 
situation in which he immediately finds a diversity 
of interests which, if not properly evaluated, related, 



74 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Responsi- 
bility on the 
high school 



The college 
also has its 
task 



The ques- 
tions of 
morals in 
college life 



and controlled, will defeat the very purpose for which 
he became a member of the college community. The 
lack of articulation on the social side is quite as marked 
and quite as unfortunate as it is on the scholastic 
side. The assertion is ventured that the lack of such 
articulation is the one cause above all others responsible 
for failures in the freshman year. 

In a considerable degree the high school is responsi- 
ble for making possible the articulation on the social 
side which is so much needed. Since in a later section 
the whole question of the social organization will be 
taken up, no detailed treatment of the subject will be 
given here. It needs to be said in passing, however, 
that no phase of the problem of preparation for college 
requires more careful consideration than the topic 
under discussion. 

In the meantime, while the high school is working 
out its problem, it is necessary for the college to take 
more fully into account the lack of social training on 
the part of those who enter its halls. Restrictive 
measures on the part of the college are already suffi- 
ciently abundant, if indeed they are not too numerous. 
The deficiency exists on the constructive side. First 
year students in college need direction in the organiza- 
tion and carrying on of their social activities. Methods 
of supervision need to be improved in the colleges as 
well as in the high schools. 

No finer type of young manhood or womanhood is 
to be found anywhere in America than in her colleges. 
But the moral breakdowns that do actually occur 
during the college years challenge our attention. 
This, of course, is not apart from the general social 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 75 

problem. It is simply an important phase of it. The 
stress and strain in a college environment must be 
taken into acount by all who have anything to do in 
the preparation for participation in college life. The 
moral and ethical standards are high and in the ab- 
sence of preparation to meet these standards, break- 
downs are apt to occur. It is unnecessary to point 
out that the way a student spends his leisure time 
bears a very direct causal relation to the moral situa- 
tion. What has been said previously of the importance 
of preparing for leisure occupation and the duty of the 
high school in relation thereto can be applied in full 
force here. 

Physical efficiency is quite as necessary for a college Demand of 
career as it is for a vocational one. It need not be f rphy5cai 
said that the old type of college student, if he ever efficiency 
existed in fact as much as in fiction, whose emaciated 
body and pale countenance were regarded as evidence 
of scholastic ability, is out of date. A college career 
demands a strong, healthy body, well controlled, with 
which to begin it and is necessary to its successful com- 
pletion. If one lives up to his opportunities in college, 
the physical strain is heavy and any deficiency at this 
point will sooner or later manifest itself. The popular 
stories concerning the physical breakdowns in the col- 
lege are not unlike those concerning moral breakdowns. 
But disregarding this exaggeration, they are far too 
frequent. One of the things which a high school 
should not fail to do is to render to the student all 
possible aid in the development of his body. It should 
give him an appreciation of its value as a college asset 
and some definite information as to how to use it. 



7 6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Guidance in 
the selection 
of a college 
course 



Necessity 
for modi- 
fications in 
entrance 
require- 
ments 



Another duty that the high school should perform in 
larger measure is to render the student who is to en- 
ter college more intelligent in his selections in his col- 
lege course. The college complains that the student 
doesn't know what he wants, much less does he know 
what he needs. However willing the college authori- 
ties may be to give advice, they are limited in their 
efficiency in this respect by lack of knowledge of the 
particular interests, needs, and capacities of the stu- 
dent who enters. The high school authorities should 
be more familiar with these things than anyone else, 
and are presumed also to know the opportunities 
offered for different lines of work by the college curric- 
ulum. For a student to be able to plan his college 
course upon entering with some degree of certainty 
that he is choosing what is most suitable to his needs 
and capacities, and what will prepare him best for his 
future career, is of very great value. 

If there is any real point of disagreement between 
the college and the high school, it is in regard to the 
scholastic requirements for entrance. We feel assured, 
however, that substantial agreement will be arrived at 
concerning this matter. As more accurate knowledge 
of the limitations and possibilities of adolescent life is 
acquired, and more vital psychological and social criteria 
worked out for evaluating subject matter, much of the 
disagreement will disappear. It is probably true that 
those who contemplate a college course will need some- 
what different preparation along scholastic lines than 
those who will go immediately into active life. But 
these differences will grow less and less as the criteria 
above referred to are more completely worked out. 



PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE 77 

One of the purposes of this discussion has been to College 
show that outside of some particular scholastic re- Sludge* 86 
quirements, the tests made by the college upon the Mgh school 
efficiency of the work done by the high school do standard 
not differ from those made by the community at large. 
Outside of this one limitation the duty of the high 
school is no different here than in other relations. If 
this fact were kept clearly in mind it would serve 
good purposes. One of the results would be that the 
college would cease to judge the high school so largely 
by a single standard and would thereby more fully 
recognize the service that the lower school can render 
in preparing students for a college career. 

On the part of both institutions a fuller realization Demand for 
of these important common interests would correct recognition 
the too common assumption that the paths of the two ? f common 

interests 

institutions lie so far apart. Anything that will serve 
to bring about more sympathetic relations between 
these two institutions, whose cause after all is a com- 
mon one, should be taken advantage of to the fullest 
possible extent. More emphasis placed upon what 
the two types of schools do actually have in common 
and less attention paid to their differences, would 
serve to bring about a spirit of cooperation now too 
frequently lacking. 



CHAPTER VIII 



The high 
school must 
more fully 
meet the 
needs of 
girls 



Reasons for 
neglect in 
education of 
girls 



THE EDUCATION OF GIRLS 

It is thought desirable to give special treatment to 
the education of girls in order that their peculiar needs 
and interests may receive the necessary emphasis. 
No such treatment of the education of boys is neces- 
sary. High schools were founded for boys and have 
too largely remained boys' schools as far as educational 
policy is concerned. The curriculum was in large 
measure an inheritance from a time when secondary 
education was scarcely thought of for girls. The 
changes that have occurred as a result of social de- 
mands have not until very recently taken girls into 
account. The result is that we are only beginning to 
consider the psychological and social characteristics 
peculiar to the majority of the students constituting 
high school enrollment in this country. 

The circumstances under which women were ad- 
mitted to what were conceived to be equal educational 
privileges are significant. Women came into the 
schools at a time when public opinion was thoroughly 
saturated with the doctrine of individual rights. No 
reason could be given why women should be denied 
the right of educational privileges. It was generally 
held, however, that they had no need of an education 
beyond that furnished by the elementary school, and 
doubt generally prevailed of their ability to secure it. 



THE EDUCATION OF GIRLS 79 

Doubt of the ability of women to master the subjects 
in the high school and college curricula no longer 
exists. Although this doubt no longer prevails, it 
has had not a little to do with the failure to make edu- 
cational readjustments in the interests of women. 
They have been so busy in demonstrating their ability 
to master the men's curriculum that they have given 
scant attention to the question whether the effort has 
been worth while. Suggestions relating to changes 
in the curriculum made from time to time have not 
been kindly received by the women. Proposals of 
this kind have not been infrequently interpreted as 
containing an implication that women are inferior in 
mental ability or that they are not entitled to equal 
educational privileges with men. This attitude on 
the part of women has exerted an influence in de- 
laying educational readjustments. 

The more potent reason for the lack of change in view taken 
educational practice has been the generally prevailing of women" 1 
assumption that education cannot have the same prac- 
tical value for women that it has for men. The fact 
that the majority of women marry soon after leaving 
school gives rise to the belief that their education is not 
a matter of serious concern. If any considerable time 
elapses between graduation and marriage, it is assumed 
that the time is employed in teaching school. Prepa- 
ration for this work has been regarded as practical and 
worth while. But outside of this, education for women 
has not been regarded as having much relation to the 
demands made upon them. It is no doubt true that 
the kind of education provided for women has fur- 
nished some justification for the conclusion. 



8o 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Application 
of previous 
discussion 



Interests 
and mental 
attitudes of 
girls 



The present interest, however, is neither in an his- 
torical account nor in the general problem of the edu- 
cation of women. The duty and opportunity of the 
high school as related to the education of girls is the 
topic with which our discussion deals. The history 
of the case and the character of higher education for 
women explain in part why the education of girls has 
not received more discriminative attention. Only for 
this reason have these matters been discussed here. 

The chief reasons for a separate discussion of the 
education of girls have already been referred to. The 
standpoints from which the work of the high school 
should be regarded, discussed in previous chapters, will 
now be applied specifically. Much that was said in 
those chapters requires such application if the needs 
and interests of girls receive the attention necessary 
to secure needed readjustments in educational prac- 
tice. These discussions will need to be kept in mind 
in reading the present chapter. 

The interests and mental attitudes peculiar to girls, 
whether these are due to social causes or to sex dif- 
ferences, must be taken into account in their educa- 
tion. The tendency to regard these as results of social 
survivals that no longer have value, is unwarranted. 
It is no doubt true that some of these are due to social 
conventions which have served their purpose. But 
this statement is no more true concerning girls and 
women than it is as regards society in general. The 
interests and mental attitudes peculiar to girls and 
women have an important function to perform both 
with regard to their development as individuals and as 
related to the degree of their social efficiency. The 



THE EDUCATION OF GIRLS 81 

important thing, so far as education is concerned, is 
to see to it that these interests and attitudes are prop- 
erly fostered and that they are made to function in 
a normal way. 

Whether these mental peculiarities are due to sex Physical 
differences may be a question of dispute. But the nee s 
educational significance of physical peculiarities due 
to sex differences is readily admitted. No system of 
education for girls which does not take this into ac- 
count is adequate. It is the business of the school in 
the first place not to require work either in character 
or amount that will in any way interfere with the 
normal physical development of the girl. The school 
should not provide or permit games or other forms 
of physical exercise that will hinder such development. 
On the positive side, there is no more important work 
that the high school can perform than to provide such 
instruction as will render the girl more intelligent con- 
cerning the nature and importance of the physical 
characteristics peculiar to her sex. This instruction 
should be supplemented by properly selected exercises 
that will serve as correctives and in a constructive 
way secure to the fullest possible extent the develop- 
ment of a strong and well controlled body. 

We may ignore if we will the wholesale charge made Education 
against the high school that the health of the great 
majority of girls is being impaired. But our common 
knowledge of the situation is enough to convince us 
that both because of its requirements and its neglect, 
the health of far too many girls is being sacrificed in the 
attempt to secure a high school education. The situ- 
ation is wholly unwarranted, and there is no possible 



82 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The problem 
a difficult 



Two means 
at the 
command 
of the 
school 



excuse to be offered for it. One fact is that health is 
being impaired and the other fact is that health should 
be improved. It is quite the fashion to minimize 
these facts by asserting that impairment of health 
is more frequently due to causes over which the school 
has no control. That social functions and late hours 
and lack of proper care are responsible in part for these 
conditions, is probably true. The truth of this affords 
the school no justification, however, for making contri- 
butions either through its requirements or its neglect. 
The problem is too serious and the issue involved too 
significant for the school to continue to deny a large 
degree of responsibility. 

But the question may be asked, What can the school 
do in the presence of the opposition that would prob- 
ably be aroused in the community if it should under- 
take to grapple with the problem? The answer is 
that it is the duty of the school to proceed cautiously 
and yet certainly to enlighten the community upon 
this very important issue. This is not a task to be 
regarded lightly, and none realize this more fully 
than those who are carrying on the work of the school. 
The achievement of the end will not be promoted by 
hasty and ill-advised attempts to solve the problem. 
Social taboos are difficult to eradicate. They will 
yield only to intelligence, and the high school must 
assume large responsibility in this relation. 

What can the high school actually do? The answer 
is that it can do two things. First, it can give a type 
of instruction that will put the girl in possession of 
information regarding the meaning of her own physical 
peculiarities. The physical education of girls should 



THE EDUCATION OF GIRLS 83 

not of course be confined to this type of instruction. 
But instruction should include this. Such instruc- 
tion will result in more wholesome attitudes on the 
part of girls and in the intelligent promotion of their 
own physical welfare. The second thing that the 
school can do, is to provide properly chosen exercises 
to assist in building up a set of useful physical habits. 
The experiences involved in the formation of these 
habits will contribute to promoting health in the 
present, and when these habits are formed they will 
function in preserving health and render the possessor 
physically efficient. Nothing can compensate for the 
neglect on the part of the school to provide opportun- 
ity for the physical education of girls. 

While women are entering nearly all the vocations Education 
formerly pursued almost exclusively by men, one ^^ me " 
vocation, that of home-keeping, deserves special con- 
sideration. The time is past when well-informed 
people regard this vocation exceptional in that it re- 
requires only feminine instinct and ingenuity to carry 
it on successfully. Education should have a con- 
tribution to make, and this contribution should be 
large and vital. Changed social conditions have trans- 
ferred some functions from the home, but they have 
also added to it others which require a type of prepara- 
tion not hitherto necessary. The school should educate 
for work in the home, and in the very nature of the 
case the high school must assume a large share of the 
responsibility. 

There are other reasons why the education of the New social 
girl should receive discriminative attention at this j|p^ ands 
time. Women are being admitted to equal political women 



84 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

privilege. Conferring the right of suffrage upon a 
large number who have not hitherto exercised this 
right is in itself significant. Under any circumstances 
this would create a serious educational problem. But 
when we take into account the fact that women bring 
into the situation new interests and peculiar mental 
attitudes toward public questions, education for citizen- 
ship takes on new meaning. This means not so much 
that the education of women should differ from that 
of men in this particular as it does that it shall not be 
neglected in training for citizenship. 
Social par- j t j s now generally conceded that women are entitled 

ticipation ° 

and personal to this larger participation in civic affairs as a means 
ment° P " °^ personal development. If this is to be realized, 
interests peculiar to them must find expression in civic 
relationships. These interests of the home, which of 
course include child welfare and all those questions 
in the community that affect its ethical and moral 
life, must find expression in such way as to give larger 
opportunity for this personal development. In edu- 
cating for citizenship, civic interests cannot be de- 
tached from the great primary interests of the home 
without loss both to the women and to society. If 
our education now has a tendency to do this, it needs 
to be changed for men as well as for women. 
Training The place for the majority of American women is in 

for civic ill n • i i i • ... 

efficiency the home, but this does not mean that their activities 
should be confined to the four walls of the house. On 
the social side, through the functioning of their great 
life interests, women will make important contribu- 
tions. What women should do in larger measure, and 
what society needs to have done, is to bring into 



THE EDUCATION OF GIRLS 85 

greater prominence social problems now being neglected. 
Whether these interests, upon which reliance must be 
placed, be born of instinct or social inheritance, or 
arise out of domestic environment, matters not. The 
important thing is to strengthen them and render 
them more intelligent so that they will find expression 
in legal enactment and law enforcement. If this can 
be accomplished by identical civic training for both 
sexes, well and good. If not, then we should not 
hesitate to differentiate where differentiation is neces- 
sary in order to secure the most efficient citizenship 
possible in a democracy. 

What has been said concerning women's influence Training for 
on legal enactment and law enforcement may be said effort 1 " 
with equal force concerning the larger influence which 
they are coming to exert in public affairs generally. 
Through their efforts, organized and unorganized, 
much is being done to shape public opinion and to 
arouse public conscience to the need of important 
social reforms. It is hoped that their activities will 
multiply and that their influence will be augmented 
in bringing about more speedily readjustments in the 
social order. We may depend upon legislation for 
some of these reforms, but in a far larger way we shall 
have to depend upon enlightened social conscience. 
From the point of view of the home and its interests 
the women should bring into the situation just the 
element that is needed and upon which the largest 
dependence for social reform will have to be placed. 

The question here is, What is the school doing to The school 
. , , ,,. should pro- 

stimulate these interests to make them more intern- vide positive 

gent and to cause them to function more powerfully trah ^ n & 



86 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The duty 
of the high 
school 



Readjust- 
ments 
demanded 



in the solution of our great social problems? The 
contention that the education of women, and particu- 
larly higher education, is tending to alienate them 
from the home and its influences, is probably not well 
founded. But even if it were established beyond 
doubt that the school is not exerting a negative in- 
fluence in this particular, this in itself does not justify 
the prevailing type of education. It is no evidence 
that the school is providing the kind of education that 
has the highest value. The question is, What positive 
influence is the school exerting to make these interests 
intelligent and in causing them to function in the 
promotion of public welfare? This is the vital ques- 
tion regarding the education of the girl as it relates to 
her preparation for social service. 

When we face the issue squarely we are confronted 
by the fact that the high school takes the girl at the 
time when interests are maturing and attitudes are 
being formed. For four years the school constitutes 
the center of her attention and effort. The vocational 
and other interests of the boy, of which our educational 
system is beginning to take serious notice, are not 
more important from the point of view of social wel- 
fare than are the peculiar interests of the girl. The 
secondary school should continue in larger measure 
to recognize the educational importance of the boy's 
interests, but it must also take into account far more 
than it is now doing the educational meaning of the 
interests of the girl. 

The arguments put forth that the immaturity of 
the high school girls makes impossible in any degree 
worth while the accomplishment of the task just out- 



THE EDUCATION OF GIRLS 87 

lined, should not be regarded too seriously. The 
school cannot do everything that some of the ardent 
promoters of this movement for a special type of edu- 
cation for girls would like to have done. The recog- 
nition of these limitations will in the end secure the 
most permanent results. There is much, however, 
that can be done by the high school and a large service 
will be rendered to the girls themselves and to society 
in the doing of it. What is needed most just now is 
emphasis upon the service which the high school can 
be made to render as a socializing institution. If 
persisted in, this can but result in a redefining of aims 
and a revaluation of means in secondary education. 
Both the physical and psychological peculiarities of 
girls must be taken into account if girls are to have 
equal educational privileges with boys. The social 
demands made upon them no less than those made 
upon boys must operate in determining the high 
school curriculum. 



PART II — ORGANIZATION AND ADMIN- 
ISTRATION OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 

A. THE INTELLECTUAL ORGANIZATION 

CHAPTER IX 
THE CURRICULUM 

Curriculum ^he curr i cu i um should be the chief means at the com- 

chief means 

at command mand of the school for performing its work. Whether 
esc oo ^3 i s actually true in practice at the present time or 
whether this has always been true in the past does not 
invalidate the proposition. Whatever may be the 
defects in curriculums at any particular time, the fact 
still remains that the chief business of the school is to 
teach a body of knowledge. The character of this 
knowledge and its organization must be such as shall 
lead to experiences on the part of the student that will 
enable him to realize his own development to the 
largest possible extent and that will prepare him in 
the best way for participation in the social process 
in which he will find a place. 

Present it should not be necessary to emphasize the impor- 

neglectof J ^. *L 

this means tance of the curriculum as a socializing agency. But 
in fact, if not in theory, there has been a tendency in 
recent years to relegate the curriculum to a relatively 
unimportant place in educational practice. It is not 
unusual to hear graduates of high schools, and even of 



THE CURRICULUM 89 

colleges, declare that only a small part of the value of 
the school course was derived from the class-room 
work. There is no disposition to challenge in any- 
wholesale fashion the validity of these statements. 
But if they are true, then there was something wrong 
with the curriculum, with the method of teaching, or 
with the attitude of the student toward his work. 
Perhaps something was wrong in all these particulars. 
Whatever the reason may be for the failure to realize 
proper values from the study of subject matter, the 
remedy is in correcting faults wherever they may lie 
and not in seeking to substitute other means for per- 
forming a work which the curriculum alone can per- 
form the most economically and successfully. 

No doubt the great emphasis being placed upon the Causes of 
importance of the social organization of the school has 
contributed to secure less emphasis upon the curriculum. 
The quite general skepticism prevailing in regard to 
the value of some of the traditional subject matter has 
also been a contributing factor. It is very probable 
that the greater emphasis being placed upon the im- 
portance of social organization is warranted, and that 
the lack of faith in some types of old subject matter 
has some justification. But nothing can justify, either 
in theory or in practice, the conception that the chief 
business of the school is other than that of teaching a 
body of subject matter through which the socializing 
of the individual will be most effectively promoted. 

It is very necessary that all those who have control importance 

... . . , of selection 

over the selection, organization, and teaching of sub- and organ- 
ject matter, perform these duties with full knowledge j^riaf 
of their importance. What material is of most value, 



9° 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



how to organize the material selected, and what are 
the best methods of teaching it, are questions demand- 
ing the most intelligent and careful consideration. 
Nothing can make up to the school what is lost through 
ignorance, carelessness, or indifference in these par- 
ticulars. It is not within the scope of our treatment 
to discuss methodology except as it is inseparably con- 
nected with an intelligent discussion of the selection 
and organization of subject matter. Our problem 
deals primarily with the selection and organization of 
material. Any discussion of methodology will be only 
incidental. 
The problem At the outset it should be kept in mind that the 

one of re- ■ 

construction practical problem is not to construct a curriculum for 
the high school. It is rather a problem of reconstruc- 
tion. Every school has its curriculum, on the one 
hand, which is working in a more or less satisfactory 
way; and on the other hand, there is constant demand 
for readjustment and reconstruction. It is a question 
then of relative values of what we already have over 
against the probable value of something else. 

Definite criteria need to be employed as guides in 
our revaluations. Just because some subjects have 
occupied a permanent place in the curriculum is not 
in itself sufficient to warrant the continuance of such 
permanence. On the other hand, this past permanence 
is not in itself sufficient to justify us in the conclusion 
that something else should take the place of these 
traditional subjects. That a particular type of sub- 
ject matter having a well established organization has 
served well, is a presumption that there is something 
of value in it else it would not have persisted. Never- 



Demand for 
proper 
criteria in 
revaluation 



THE CURRICULUM 91 

theless, it is only common sense to assume that new 
social demands or old demands in new form will call 
for a corresponding change in the means and methods 
of education. These are only general considerations, 
however, and can serve only as a basis for proceeding 
to more definite standards for determining values. 

It is desirable, first of all, to account for the subject Accounting 
matter that we already have. In approaching this matter now 
question it is useful to keep in mind the causes that fr™ 
account for the curriculum in any type of school at any 
particular time in its history. In the main, there are 
three types of influences accounting for curriculums. 
In part they operate in the present to maintain what 
is, and in part they exert an influence in attempt- 
ing to change the present status. These influences 
are designated as tradition, professional influence, 
and social demands. In an attempt to account for 
curricula, it is necessary to ascertain the extent to 
which each of these influences is responsible for the 
subjects included. In some cases we shall find one 
of these influences alone responsible, and in other 
cases a complex of two and possibly even all of them 
may combine in different proportions to give to a 
subject its preeminent place. In making a study 
of the history of certain subjects it is found that 
the influences responsible for their introduction into 
the curriculum have disappeared and other influences 
account for their continued presence. Latin is an 
example of this class of subjects. 

The school, like all other institutions, has its tra- Traditional 
ditions and these always have more or less influence 
in determining its aims, means, and methods. It is 



92 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

only natural that subject matter highly valuable as 
educational means when it becomes a part of the school 
curriculum should sometimes persist beyond the point 
where its utility has the same relative value. Changing 
conceptions of education, incident to changing social 
demands, render it highly probable that educational 
means should be modified to meet new demands. But 
old subject matter gives way slowly. It has become 
so identified with the meaning of education that it is 
difficult to disassociate it. It often persists long after 
the types of schools with which it was identified have 
passed out of existence. The humanistic studies, for 
example, which have occupied so prominent a place in 
the high school curriculum, have survived at least 
two types of schools, the Grammar School and the 
Academy, 
influence of Tradition usually finds powerful support in the 
teaching class. The two influences form a complex 
that gives some subject matter a degree of prominence 
seemingly out of proportion to its educative value. 
But, aside from this support that the teaching class 
gives to tradition, it is always an important factor in 
determining the particular content and form of subject 
matter used. Geometry, for example, is a school- 
master's subject. As used by the Greeks it was a prac- 
tical subject, but it was transformed into a logical 
subject by the philosophers and has so remained up to 
the present. The content of algebra is almost entirely 
a product of the teaching class. The content of Latin 
has been largely determined by the same influence. 
English, a comparatively new subject, owes its present 
content almost entirely to the teacher's influence. In 



THE CURRICULUM 93 

the sciences, perhaps no better example of this same 
influence can be found than the orthodox textbook 
in botany. Even when tradition dictates the general 
field, the professional influence in greater or less 
degree determines what is actually taught. 

The influence thus exercised by the teaching class is Teachers in 
of course inevitable. Teachers have always made stitutions 
this contribution and will continue so to do. But it J^ve exerted 

the major 

is necessary to indicate a little more definitely the influence 
source of this influence. Teachers in the secondary 
schools, as a whole, have had little direct influence 
upon the character and extent of subject matter. It 
is the teachers in higher institutions who are makers 
of textbooks and whose influence determines college 
entrance requirements that have exerted the con- 
trolling influence in the selection of subject matter. 
Whether or not this influence makes for the best 
interests of the secondary school depends upon the 
standards employed in evaluating material. 

If these teachers in higher institutions are cognizant Quaiifica- 
of social demands and in sympathy with them, they teachers in 
can, because of their familiarity with their respective thisrelation 
fields, render a highly important service through the 
selection and formulation of suitable material for the 
secondary school. If they add to this qualification 
a further one, — viz. an intimate and sympathetic 
knowledge of the needs, capacities, and interests of 
adolescent life, — their service is rendered doubly 
significant. On the other hand, if any material in our 
present curricula is there merely because of the intel- 
lectual and highly specialized interests of those who 
are responsible for its presence, it should be regarded 



94 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Character 
and in- 
fluence of 
social 
demands 



with suspicion. Material, whatever may be the in- 
fluence responsible for its presence in the curriculum, 
must meet the double test of being justified both by 
social and psychological considerations. 

Social demands expressed in one way or another are, 
of course, in the first instance, responsible for the 
presence of subjects, if not for the detailed subject 
matter. Latin thus gained a place because of its 
practical utility. History came in because of its 
supposed moral as well as civic value. English forced 
itself in against both traditional and professional in- 
fluences. And so with the other subjects. The de- 
mands are more or less specific, and utilitarian reasons 
are usually responsible for them. The demand in 
some instances comes from a small group and at other 
times from a large group. It occasionally happens 
that a social demand becomes institutionalized, as in 
the case of the demands made by higher institutions 
upon the secondary school. We may thus have a com- 
plex of all three influences — ■ tradition, professional 
influences, and social demand — ■ responsible for the 
presence of both the subject and the subject matter. 
Social de- It is not in this historical sense, however, that we 

merely social employ here the term social demands. In this sense, 
sanction social demand may mean merely social sanction. By 
social demands we mean those demands which in the 
present are made by certain classes in society and 
which result in the introduction of subjects into the 
curriculum for the purpose of meeting these demands. 
The commercial subjects and manual training, for 
example, are familiar types of subjects which are the 
result of these demands. There is a present social 



THE CURRICULUM 95 

demand for agriculture and other vocational subjects; 
also for English, civics, and some of the other older 
subjects. Whether the particular type of subject mat- 
ter of any or all of these is adequately meeting these 
demands is another question. It is evident, for ex- 
ample, that there is unanimous agreement that English 
should be taught in the high school. There is by no 
means the same unanimity concerning the value of 
the subject matter now employed in instruction. 

In submitting the present curriculum to an examina- Present cur 
tion to ascertain whether it is adequately meeting social ""^f 1 ^ 
demands, we have to consider it first of all from the from the 
standpoint of the subjects themselves. Are there any ^subjects 
subjects in the curriculum for which there are no and subject 

matter 

apparent corresponding social demands? On the other 
hand, are there social demands for which there are no 
corresponding subjects? If we answer either or both 
of these questions in the affirmative, then reconstruc- 
tions are necessary. When the fields have thus been 
determined, the next inquiry must be to ascertain 
whether the subject matter in kind and extent corre- 
sponds to the demands upon the school. Botany as 
it has been taught in the schools has had at least four 
relatively different types of content. On the other 
hand, there are subjects — geometry, for example — ■ 
the content of which has remained relatively constant. 

In our inquiry concerning both subjects and subject Relative not 
matter it is, of course, necessary to keep in mind that values must 
values are not absolute but relative. No subject in be«m- 
the curriculum at present, whatever the subject mat- 
ter may be, is without some educative value. But 
the question is whether one subject or one type of 



o6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Organiza- 
tion of 
curriculum 
should re- 
veal domi- 
nant 

educational 
aim 



subject matter is more or less valuable than another 
subject or another type of subject matter. Every 
high school curriculum provides and must continue to 
provide but a relatively small number of subjects, 
and of subject matter itself a still smaller amount. In 
consequence of this, in the revaluation of subject mat- 
ter and the reconstruction of curriculums, that which 
is rejected will far exceed that which is chosen. Not 
infrequently in the discussion of educative values, 
these facts have not had due consideration. The 
problem of choice of subjects, once relatively simple, 
is becoming more and more difficult both because of 
the multiplication of subjects available and because 
of the increasing number and complexity of social 
demands. For the same reasons, selection of material 
within the fields chosen is becoming an increasingly 
complex and difficult problem. 

A study of a curriculum should reveal, however, 
not only the subjects included and the subject matter 
selected, but also the dominant purpose or aim of 
instruction. This is revealed not alone by the sub- 
ject matter as such but is also made clear by the organ- 
ization of this material into a workable whole. There 
must be some kind of definite organization controlled 
by a dominant purpose, and it is important that we 
examine every curriculum with reference to this con- 
trolling purpose. If a curriculum is anything more 
than a mere hodge-podge, it has a purposeful organiza- 
tion, and those who administer it, if they are not mere 
blind operators of a machine, recognize the dominant 
purpose that determines the organization. If one 
were to examine the curriculums of the old Grammar 



THE CURRICULUM 97 

Schools or those of the German Gymnasia, the organi- 
zation is clearly revealed. The aim of the curriculum 
was " formal discipline," and all the subjects bore 
relation to the achievement of that end. At first the 
subject matter was almost wholly classical. Nothing 
that did not correlate with this material was admitted 
and what was admitted was employed in more com- 
pletely realizing the end sought. Mathematics readily 
found a place because of its power to contribute and 
our older English grammars reveal clearly that an 
attempt was made to have the English language con- 
tribute to the realization of this dominant purpose. 
Whatever may have been the defects of these old, 
restricted curriculums, they had the decided advantage 
of being definitely organized and the teachers in these 
schools understood well what the organization meant. 

This dominating purpose of secondary education, influence of 
"formal discipline, " has largely determined educational ^ 0T ^i » 
practice, educational theory to the contrary notwith- 
standing. When new subjects were admitted into the 
curriculum they were soon dominated by the discipli- 
nary aim. We usually associate formal discipline with 
the classics and mathematics, but as a matter of fact 
science teaching has in recent years been the chief ex- 
ponent of the disciplinary theory. The aim has been 
to develop a certain type of mental technique which we 
have assumed could be generalized. We have talked 
about " scientific method" and " scientific attitudes," 
thereby revealing that the theory of transfer of training 
governed in educational practice. Any other theory that 
may have been held has failed to express itself in respect 
to particular subjects or in the curriculum as a whole. 



98 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

introduction On th e other hand, while the disciplinary conception 

of new . . i 7 , . 

subjects has has continued to determine educational practice, we 
confusion 11 nave ^ een adding many new subjects and providing 
makeshift courses to parallel the " regular'' course. 
In an attempt to maintain educational respectability 
and at the same time provide for meeting the social 
demands that are becoming so insistent, the high 
school curriculum has lost much of its former unity. 
The elective system has added further to the confusion. 
Required subjects reveal clearly enough the predomi- 
nant influence of the disciplinary conception, while the 
elective subjects reveal with equal clearness that they 
are mere additions to, rather than an integral part of, 
a definitely organized curriculum. If there were no 
other reason for a reorganization of the secondary 
school curriculum, the chaotic condition just pointed 
out is sufficient to warrant it. 
A curriculum j n an attempt to judge of educational values in a 

judged by its . , . . . 

required course of study it is necessary to ascertain what con- 
subjects stitutes its core. For example, if mathematics, foreign 
language, and English constitute the required sub- 
jects, these are the ones upon which the school places 
chief reliance. The very fact that they are required 
is proof of this. The first two are primarily form 
studies as opposed to history and some other subjects 
which are recognized as content studies. Although 
English may not belong strictly in the same class with 
mathematics and foreign language, it is very similar 
to them in this regard. If these three subjects are 
required, it is probable that three-fifths or more of 
the student's time will be devoted to them. However 
numerous the electives offered may be, the required 



THE CURRICULUM 99 

subjects represent very largely whatever educational 
opportunity the school affords. A wide range of 
electives with relatively little time to devote to the 
studies will not essentially change the character of the 
course of study. 

Any curriculum, however, must be judged in part Also by its 
by its elective studies. The number and character electives 
of these subjects must be taken into account. If they 
are few in number, not much choice is rendered possi- 
ble. If choices are compelled between subjects belong- 
ing to the same general field — ■ for example, between 
botany and physics — little or nothing is gained. In 
case the electives are relatively numerous and but a 
short time is devoted to each, it is evident that a 
student can become only superficially familiar with 
any of them. For example, if the four or five units 
of electives are made up of six to ten subjects, no one 
subject can be relied upon for much either in the 
way of present development or of preparation for 
meeting a community demand. Further than this, 
it must be ascertained whether there is any sort of 
organization of the electives. Are they thrown in 
hit-and-miss, governed by nothing but administra- 
tive convenience? Or is there a well defined organiza- 
tion with reference to securing definite educational 
values? 

Another important thing to consider is the position Value of a 
occupied by a subject. Take, for example, the sub- determined 
ject of civics. This subject was introduced on the b . y {t f posi " 

tion in the 

assumption that every high school student should have curriculum 
an opportunity to gain some knowledge of the duties 
of citizenship. But suppose it is not offered until the 



IOO 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



A curric- 
ulum 
judged by 
actual sub- 
ject matter 
used 



fourth year. The records show that seventy per cent 
of the pupils will not elect the subject simply because 
they will have dropped out of school before the begin- 
ning of the fourth year. Civics in the fourth year 
means then that only about one-fourth of the students 
who enter the high school will ever study the subject. 
When we refer to algebra, however, we know that all 
will take it, not only because it is required but because 
it is placed in the first year of the course. The sub- 
jects placed in the first year of the course are the 
ones that all take. Those placed in the last years 
will provide educational opportunity for a relatively 
small number of high school students. 

A knowledge of the subjects making up a course of 
study and their arrangement in the course constitutes 
but one standpoint from which to judge educational 
values. The subject matter actually used in instruc- 
tion is after all the determining factor in the matter. 
As related to some subjects, the subject matter is quite 
a matter of course. Algebra, for example, stands for 
a relatively definite type of subject matter. So it is 
with geometry or Latin. On the contrary, the word 
botany may stand for anything within a very wide 
range of subject matter. A high school course can 
include but a small portion of the material in the whole 
field. This is also true of other subjects, such as his- 
tory or civics or literature. Even the terms ancient 
history or English literature convey but little informa- 
tion concerning what is actually taught. Only by 
knowing the character of the subject matter can one 
pass judgment concerning the educational value of 
the subjects offered. 



THE CURRICULUM 101 

When detailed information is secured concerning the Test . s t0 be 
curriculum of a high school, then one is able to apply subjects and 
the tests that determine educational values. The JjSj^ 
points of view from which the function of the high school 
should be regarded have been discussed in detail in 
Part I. Subjects and subject matter alike should be 
required to meet the demands made upon the school 
viewing its work from one or more of these points of 
view. Not all subjects can provide material for 
physical education. Preparation for leisure occupa- 
tion can not be afforded by some subjects. No sub- 
ject can be made to serve all the ends of education. 
But any subject that has a rightful place in the curric- 
ulum must afford opportunity to select material that 
will contribute to the realization of one or more of the 
definite ends of high school education. 



CHAPTER X 



SELECTION AND ORGANIZATION OF MATERIAL 



Changes 
needed in 
subject 
matter 



Educational 
practice in 
the high 
school has 
not kept 
pace with 
theory 



The changes most needed in the work of the high 
school have to do not with subjects but with subject 
matter. History, botany, English, one or more of 
the foreign languages, and other subjects now con- 
stituting the curriculum will remain. The newer sub- 
jects, agriculture, domestic science, and the manual 
arts will form but a small part of the total subjects 
offered by the high school. The older subjects will 
continue to be relied upon in large measure to fur- 
nish educational opportunity to our young people. It 
would be unfortunate, for example, if mathematics 
were dropped from the course of study. Much of the 
material now used, however, should give place to other 
material more suitable to the needs of high school 
students. The same should be said of some other 
subjects constituting present curriculums. Changes in 
the character of subject matter are necessary if the 
high school is to perform its work successfully. 

The influences responsible for the present type of 
subject matter have already been discussed. These 
forces are now in conflict as they have not been since 
the origin of the high school. Old educational theories 
are giving way as a result of this conflict. But unfor- 
tunately old educational practices continue while the 
conflict goes on. Traditions still hold in most of the 



ORGANIZATION OF MATERIAL 103 

subjects and continue to determine their content and 
type of organization. Reform in educational practice 
began in the primary school and its progress upward 
has been slow. Reading is still taught in the grades, 
but the subject matter used differs very radically from 
what was employed in the earlier schools. Mathe- 
matics in the high school has remained practically 
unchanged for half a century. The subject matter in 
general of high school instruction has changed but 
little, and changes are as much needed here as in the 
lower school. Child psychology has been far more 
influential in determining the work of the grades than 
has adolescent psychology in determining the work of 
the high school. The needs, interests, and capacities 
of adolescents should have the same consideration that 
they have received in the education of the child. 

In the selection of educational means this emphasis importance 
upon the personal factor is extremely important. The uponta* 818 
needs of the individual give rise to demands that are personal 

. . . . . factor 

always valid. To allow traditions to dictate in making 
selections of material and thereby defeat the aim of 
instruction is indefensible. Social demands for results 
in education do not always constitute rightful demands 
upon the high school. Teachers themselves too fre- 
quently view subject matter from the standpoint not 
only of the adult but of the specialist. In consequence 
of this, they fail to give proper consideration to the 
needs, interests, and capacities of those whom they 
teach. They are apt to forget that the test of the 
material used is not whether it gives intellectual 
pleasure to the teacher but whether it provides means 
of development for the pupils. Subject matter must 



104 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



This factor 

relatively 

constant 



Interests of 
adolescents 
chiefly 
social 



be within the range of the interests and capabilities of 
the learner if it is to serve any useful purpose. 

The personal factor to be taken into account in the 
selection of material is fortunately relatively constant. 
Whether in city or country, whether students are pre- 
paring for college or for vocational activities, the 
interests and capacities of adolescents are relatively 
the same. Individual differences do exist and are to 
be reckoned with. The matter of preparation for 
the work of the high school is also to be considered. 
The high school must begin where the work of the 
grades leaves off. But after full allowance is made for 
individual differences and for the varying degrees of 
adequacy of preparation, the fact remains that high 
school students are much alike. 

Adolescents are primarily interested in what is to 
them a new social world. Their fundamental interests 
relate to people, and they are chiefly concerned in ad- 
justing themselves to the social demands of which 
they are becoming conscious. What is true in this 
respect of the beginning of the adolescent period is 
characteristic of the whole high school period. Some 
of these interests are vocational, others relate to the 
employment of leisure time, and others are of the more 
strictly intellectual type. But whatever they are, they 
are essentially social in character. Youth is interested 
in the concrete rather than the abstract, in the personal 
rather than the impersonal. It is true that there is 
interest in abstractions, in laws and principles, 
and other forms of generalization, but only or 
at least chiefly, when these relate to social situa- 
tions. 



ORGANIZATION OF MATERIAL 105 

It is a common error to assume that high school importance 
students are interested chiefly in intellectual tasks as g^^Jf 1 
such, when in fact some social stimulus accounts for 
the interest. The stimulus may exist in the school or it 
may arise out of some social demand in the community. 
To isolate the task from the stimulus giving rise to 
the interest in it, is to neglect the essential thing that 
gives to the task its educative value. The German 
boy, for example, has quite a different attitude toward 
the work of the school than does the American boy. 
This is not, however, due to the intellectual superiority 
of the former. It is due, on the contrary, to a kind of 
social stimulus lacking in this country. Take away 
the influence of militarism and the social distinctions 
in Germany as they relate to education, and the so- 
called intellectual interests of the German student 
would probably disappear. 

The individual to be educated must first of all be Socia i 
taken into account in selecting the means of educa- demands 

should not 

tion. This gives us a standpoint from which to regard be allowed 
social demands as they relate to the work of the school. J^^S ° 
Education can, of course, have no meaning apart from dut y of fc® 
these demands. But the development of the youth 
and not what he is going to do after he gets out of 
school, except as development and future occupation 
are related, must furnish the basis for selecting edu- 
cational means. Just because some industry in a 
community demands a particular kind of training for 
its workers is not in itself sufficient justification for 
the school to undertake to meet this demand. As 
an example of some social pressures that do not con- 
stitute a rightful demand upon the school, the one for 



io6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Social 

demands 

furnish 

specific 

criteria for 

selection of 

material 



trained technical workers may again be cited. This 
demand is not justified, simply because the adolescent 
period is not the time in life when a large degree of 
skill can be acquired without hindrance to a normal 
development of the individual. Technical training 
involves relatively narrow interests and calls for atti- 
tudes belonging to more mature years. To thus 
restrict interests and attempt to develop attitudes 
prematurely can but result in harm to the indi- 
vidual. 

It is true, of course, that education is not to be 
thought of as apart from the social demands that will 
be made upon the learner. These demands furnish the 
more specific criteria for the selection of subject matter. 
Take again the illustration of the German boy and 
the American boy. The detailed content of some sub- 
jects taught in the secondary schools of the two coun- 
tries will not be the same. History should be taught 
in both schools, but the actual content used will differ. 
English history should have a much larger place in the 
American school than in the German school. The 
American not only needs to know more English his- 
tory, but it is necessary for him to be made familiar 
with certain phases of the subject in order to under- 
stand the history of his own country. The German 
boy for the same reasons needs to have emphasis 
placed upon continental history. Both boys should 
have instruction in civics. The relation sustained 
by the German citizen to his country is so different 
from that which the American citizen sustains to his 
country, that the content of the subject there and 
here will be correspondingly different. 



ORGANIZATION OF MATERIAL 107 

The differences in individual and social conditions Different 
in different sections of the country require somewhat margin 
different types of subject matter. Civics as taught different 
in cities should differ somewhat in content from the 
subject matter used in the schools of rural com- 
munities. Industrial communities give rise to social 
demands differing from those of agricultural communi- 
ties. The subject matter of the sciences and mathe- 
matics should be determined in part at least by the 
extent and character of these demands. The terms 
"farm physics" and "farm mathematics," and "in- 
dustrial physics" and "shop mathematics" indicate 
in a general way the various types of subject matter. 
These examples will serve to make clear the part that 
social demands play in furnishing criteria for select- 
ing subject matter. 

An illustration of the influence of social demands The work 
upon the character of subject matter is furnished by m , st . Louis 

^ ' J school as 

the German courses offered by the St. Louis high school, example 
It has been the practice in this school for many years 
to offer both "literary" and "business" German. All 
students pursue the same work until a mastery of the 
rudiments is secured, and then the work is differen- 
tiated in order to meet the practical demands of the 
community. The business interests of the community 
demand such differentiation and the school authorities 
recognize it as a rightful demand upon the school. 

It has been made clear that subject matter should subject 
be selected primarily for its content value. No sub- ™J^ df 
ject in our view can be justified merely or even largely its content 
on "disciplinary" grounds. It must possess a content 
that justifies its place in the curriculum or give place 



io8 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Material 
must be 
organized 
for teaching 
purposes 



Mind of the 

learner 

should 

determine 

type of 

organization 



to something else. This conclusion is justified upon 
both psychological and social grounds. The adolescent 
is first of all concerned in building up a mental content 
and the development of mental technique can not be 
secured apart from the content process. Social stimuli 
must be relied upon for a motive for learning and the 
thing learned should possess the largest possible value 
as related to meeting social demands. 

The selection of material constitutes only a part 
of the task belonging to textbook makers and teachers. 
The organization of the material into appropriate form 
for teaching purposes requires attention. A mass of 
unorganized material has little value for educational 
purposes, and material having an organization not 
in harmony with the experience of the learner is equally 
unsuited for purposes of instruction. The severely 
logical organization of subject matter which appeals 
to the mind of the adult specialist is not suited to the 
mind of the adolescent. The person who has acquired 
a considerable mastery of a subject is prone to give to 
any portion of it such organization as is possible to 
the high school student only after he has attained 
to something of the same degree of mastery. The 
learner's mind, not the teacher's, furnishes the only 
proper basis for a useful organization of subject matter. 
A knowledge of the adolescent mind is quite as neces- 
sary as related to the organization of material as it is 
to its selection. 

The older textbooks in economics furnish an ex- 
ample of a type of organization unsuited to the capaci- 
ties of high school students. Recent books are by 
no means free from this same objection. Definitions 



ORGANIZATION OF MATERIAL 109 

and principles are the concepts used by the specialist 
in his thinking. They constitute for him starting 
points from which to deal with concrete problems grow- 
ing out of economic relationships. His knowledge of 
the subject has permitted him to work out an organiza- 
tion that will meet the requirements of the logic of the 
subject. The beginner has no such fund of experience 
and no proper setting for the abstractions with which 
he is required to deal. To require him to begin only 
where he can leave off after at least an elementary 
knowledge of the subject is a too common type of 
educational folly. The student already knows some- 
thing of economic relationships and this knowledge 
furnishes the necessary point of contact. The mode 
of procedure employed by the learner outside of school 
should be continued within the school. The school 
should endeavor to hasten the process, but it should 
not attempt to reverse the method by which the 
process has been carried on. 

Textbooks in the various high school sciences offer some 
abundant evidence of a type of organization unsuited ^??^ al 
to the adolescent mind. Some improvement is noted suffer from 
in the more recent books, but the marks of the special- pr ope°r 
ist are still too much in evidence. One of the later organization 
texts in botany undertakes to introduce the student to 
the subject through a discussion of the structure of 
plants. The first thing that the learner is required 
to master concerning roots is a mass of detail relat- 
ing to structure. This plan of organization prevails 
throughout the book. The material selected is in the 
main more suitable than is found in the older books, 
but its organization renders it uninteresting if not, 



no THE HIGH SCHOOL 

indeed, unintelligible to the average high school stu- 
dent. Physics has suffered a good deal from the same 
intolerable organization of material. High school boys 
and girls are interested in the subject matter of this 
field, but the organization must be in accord with 
their ability to deal with it. 
New sub- It is not strange that the older subjects should be 

free from under the influence of a conception of education that 
s £ me ti placed great stress upon logical organization. We 

should expect, however, that the newer subjects would 
not be thus controlled. But this is not always so. 
Some of the textbooks in agriculture are quite as logi- 
cal in their organization as are texts in subjects re- 
ferred to above. A recent text intended for high school 
students devotes the first two chapters to the scientific 
aspect of the subject, while the art, not the science, of 
the subject serves as the only fruitful introduction. 
The entire book shows the attempt of the author to 
render the treatment "logical," and in consequence 
teachers find the text quite impossible of use for high 
school instruction. 

In the following chapters the various lines of high 
school work will be taken up. The criteria suggested 
in the present chapter will be employed in the discus- 
sion of the details involved in the selection of subject 
matter. The necessary limits of the book will not 
permit detailed outlines of courses of instruction in the 
various fields. 



CHAPTER XI 

THE SOCIAL STUDIES 

The field in which we find the material correspond- Y* 1116 ° f . 

the social 

ing most nearly to the social processes now going on is studies 
that of social science. The social processes are the 
ones to which the adolescent is endeavoring to relate 
himself, and therefore the social studies are especially 
valuable during the high school period. History, 
civics, and economics are the subjects within this field 
most suitable for use in the high school. They may 
be made to serve in promoting the appreciation of and 
control over the social environment in which the ado- 
lescent will finally test his social efficiency. These 
subjects constitute the ideal subject matter for the 
education of youth and should give tone and color to 
the curriculum as a whole. Up to the present time 
the social studies have been regarded too largely as 
merely convenient electives for those who, because of 
lack of ability or interest, fail in other subjects. There 
is abundant reason for placing them in the required list 
of every high school curriculum. 

The social studies, perhaps even more than some unfortunate 
others, have suffered because of lack of proper dis- select V>ns of 

7 g t r- r- material 

crimination in selecting material. The fields are so mode 
large and the high school can offer relatively so little 
opportunity for study, that the practice has been to 



ii2 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

go to one or the other of two extremes in the selection 
of material. The earlier practice was to attempt to 
give the most meager outline of the whole range of 
the subjects. " Outlines of Universal History" and 
11 General History" are titles that indicate the range 
of subject matter offered in history. Texts in civics 
and economics were nothing more than abridgments 
of college texts in the same subjects. The more recent 
practice has been to provide for more intensive study 
of a narrower range of subject matter. For example, 
the history of Greece and Rome has been substituted 
for the "history of the world." This plan is preferable 
to the earlier practice, but if the material selected for 
study is chosen from the point of view of adult interests 
and capacities, instruction is rendered difficult and 
fruitless. Certain phases of life receive emphasis and 
other phases are given scant attention without regard 
to the interests and needs of the learner. Minutiae of 
detail of the political life of peoples are given, while 
little is offered concerning manners and customs relat- 
ing to daily modes of life. 

In considering the matter of instruction in social 
science, one is confronted by the fact that textbooks 
contain much material unsuitable for high school work. 
The process of selection is therefore first of all one of 
elimination, followed by substitution of material in 
harmony with the needs and interests of students. 
The reasons why elimination and substitution are 
necessary in such large measure are not difficult to 
find. The social studies were given a place in the 
curriculum under protest. The marks of this adverse 
prejudice against these studies are still manifest. The 



THE SOCIAL STUDIES 113 

dominant ideal of " mental discipline " gave scant 
consideration to content subjects of any kind. Later 
when " informational " studies were regarded as having 
a place, they were subordinated to the disciplinary 
ones. Then followed the emphasis upon mere facts as 
such, without due regard for the needs and capacities 
of the learner. These influences have determined the 
means of instruction in the social studies. In conse- 
quence the subject matter is generally not suitable for 
high school work and the 'prevailing type of organiza- 
tion is not in harmony with the capacities of the 
students. 

In history, too much attention has been paid to Too much 
political history. Political dynasties and wars have on poutical 
constituted the chief centers of attention. These history 
possess a certain dramatic interest, but they do not 
constitute the core of vital and valuable courses in 
history. They represent neither its substance nor its 
spirit. Knowledge of this kind has but little value in 
itself nor does it result in the development of intelli- 
gent and helpful attitudes toward social processes now 
going on. It has happened too frequently that the 
historical environment in which we have attempted to 
place young people is not the kind in which orientation 
is possible. And further, it has not been a kind in 
which we should want them to orient themselves even 
if they could. History to be valuable must constitute 
a social environment to which youth can respond in 
such way as to promote social perceptions and aid in 
arriving at proper social valuations. If a knowledge 
of the past is to aid in interpreting the present, it must 
have vital relation to the present. 



ii4 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Chief 

interests of 
historical 
peoples re- 
quire more 
attention 



Vocational 
interests 
and 
activities 



People are not now chiefly concerned with resisting 
governments nor in modifying political institutions. 
Nor have these endeavors ever been matters of chief 
concern, although the history taught in secondary 
schools would lead the learner to believe that the 
chief occupations of peoples have been to tear down 
one government and set up another one. The fact 
is that people have been chiefly concerned in edu- 
cation and religion, and in occupational activities, 
vocational and leisure. Modes of expression relating 
to these great life interests are found in their manners 
and customs, in music and art, in means of communi- 
cation, and modes of travel, in sports and games, and 
in modes of carrying on their daily work. Political 
structure of some kind is necessary to any society, and 
we must know something of this structure in order 
to understand the life of any people. But other struc- 
tures are just as necessary, and reveal more clearly the 
thought and ideals and endeavors of those whose man- 
ner of life we would know. 

Social structures other than political are the ones in 
which people are chiefly concerned and through 
which they make the largest contribution to social 
welfare. No better approach can be found to the inner 
life of a people than through a study of their occupa- 
tional activities. Far more emphasis should be placed 
upon this type of historical material than it now re- 
ceives. People have always been chiefly engaged in 
those activities through which they gained a living. 
The nature of these activities has much to do with 
their ideals and social aims. If commercial interests 
predominate, this fact gives color to their civilization. 



THE SOCIAL STUDIES 115 

This is true in regard to agriculture or any other pre- 
dominant type of occupational activity. In case any 
single industry overshadows all others, manners and 
customs, laws and institutions, will differ materially 
from what they would be if industry were diversified. 
If conditions of economic life are extremely hard, little 
interest can be expected in the higher forms of social 
expression. On the contrary, if labor is well rewarded, 
time and opportunity will be afforded for the things 
that make for social progress. One can have no ade- 
quate appreciation of the history of our own country, 
for example, in the absence of a knowledge of our 
economic development. Fortunately, the vocational 
interests of adolescents furnish a vital point of contact 
with this type of historical material. The knowledge 
acquired and attitudes developed through a study of 
this kind of subject matter are worthy of attainment. 

The artistic appreciation and achievements of a Artistic ap- 
people constitute another fruitful point of view from ^acMeve- 
which to enter into sympathetic relations with them. men * s 
No discussion need to be entered into to demonstrate 
the close relation between the ideals of a people and 
their forms of artistic expression. Those things which 
we regard as truest and most beautiful are symbolized 
in forms of artistic expression. Sculpture and paint- 
ing and architecture are abiding testimonials to the 
degree in which a people has attained to an apprecia- 
tion of the aesthetic in nature and in human life. This 
is particularly true of the ancient peoples who had not 
yet worked out a technique for expressing aesthetic 
sentiments in other forms. Not only is art a fruitful 
means of approach to an understanding and appre- 



n6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Educational 

systems 

furnish 

valuable 

material 



Subject 
matter 
must all be 
within the 
range of 
interests and 
capacities of 
learners 



ciation of the noblest and best in their lives, but it 
also represents for some peoples one of the chief forms 
in which they made their contribution to civilization. 

The educational system of a nation reveals what it 
regards as most worthy of being made permanent in 
its civilization. The school is at once a product of 
social forces and an instrument in furthering social 
progress. It is not always immediately responsive to 
social demands, but neither is government, nor indeed, 
any other social institution. Whether education is. 
for the few or for the many, whether publicly supported 
and controlled or left to private initiative and enter- 
prise, and whether schools are articulated in such way 
as to result in a unified system, are all matters of 
great importance. The fact that the common schools 
of Germany are for one class in society and the second- 
ary schools for another class, reveals social conditions 
even more clearly than a study of German govern- 
ment. To understand the development of our own 
country, some knowledge of the rise and growth of 
educational institutions is a necessity. At the present 
time we are engaged in a reorganization of our whole 
educational system, and intelligence is demanded in 
regard to what reforms are needed and the means of 
best securing necessary changes. 

No attempt is made here to set forth in detail the 
material for courses in history in the secondary school. 
Points of view other than political — such as modes of 
living, occupations, and religions — are valuable as 
guides in selecting material. The purpose of this 
discussion is only to make clear the standpoints for 
the selection of such material as will be most useful 



THE SOCIAL STUDIES 117 

in realizing the aim of history teaching. Subject 
matter must be within the range of the interests and 
capacities of the adolescent and result in knowledge 
and attitudes that will aid young people in orienting 
themselves in the present social process. If we 
would have them relate themselves to this process as 
it now is, no such fruitful means are at our command 
as historical material, wisely chosen and properly 
presented. 

In considering further the social studies we need to civics and 
take into account the two subjects most closely related JjJJ ^" 
to history — economics and civics. In fact, these sub- from which 

1 . ■, . 1 . . to select 

jects should constitute nothing more than viewpoints material 
from which to regard the whole body of intimately 
related material to which we apply the term social 
science. The controversy over the question whether 
civics and history should be brought together as one 
subject, has been fruitful in that it has brought out more 
clearly the fact that it is impossible to separate the 
content of the one from the other by any absolute 
line of demarcation. On the other hand, it has been 
made clear that the two points of view promote the 
fruitfulness of the teaching of each. It needs to be 
emphasized that economics bears a like relation to 
history. It is simply a necessary viewpoint from 
which to regard certain material in the field of social 
science. 

History deals with facts, economics with the problems Economics 
that these facts constitute. These are problems of !jffiSL 
human welfare and constitute the point of view from problems 
which to regard the facts. Economics rightly regarded 
does not deal with theories but with economic con- 



n8 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Problems of 

most 

immediate 

concern 

selected 



ditions giving rise to great social problems with which 
we are attempting to deal. Reference has already 
been made to the value of the study of industrial his- 
tory. The study of economics should give opportunity 
for the use of knowledge acquired in the interpreta- 
tion of present industrial problems. There seems to 
be some disposition to substitute this type of history 
for economics. This is a mistake. If we must choose 
between the history of economic development and a 
study of present economic problems, the latter alter- 
native should be chosen. No problems before the 
American people at the present time are more impor- 
tant than those growing out of industrial relations. 
The high school more than any other educational 
institution must be relied upon to provide an intelli- 
gent citizenship for the solution of these problems. 

The course in economics should deal with the prob- 
lems that are most vital and those of most concern to 
the mass of the people. The transportation problem is 
at present one of great interest to the people. Whether 
we shall attempt to solve the problem through govern- 
mental control or governmental ownership is an open 
question. Adequate control of some kind is being 
sought, and only through a generally disseminated 
intelligence, concerning the relations that common 
carriers bear to the people, can an understanding of 
the problem be secured. The wage problem is another 
public question of vital interest. We are seeking to 
control conditions and remuneration of labor by means 
of governmental action, and a knowledge of the factors 
involved in the question is demanded of our citizens. 
These problems indicate the type that should be 



THE SOCIAL STUDIES 119 

selected for emphasis in a course in economics in the 
high school. A knowledge of the facts of our eco- 
nomic life is required of all those who will enter into 
economic relations. Intelligent attitudes toward the 
human welfare problems resulting from our complex 
industrial conditions must constitute one of the aims 
of instruction in economics. 

The questions growing out of economic and other Practical 
social relations give rise to problems calling for govern- ci^cT* 6 ' ° 
mental control. It goes without saying, of course, 
that these, too, are human welfare problems. The 
content and organization of some of our textbooks 
in civics would lead us to believe that they are the 
creations of constitutional lawyers and political philos- 
ophers. On the contrary, the problems with which 
civics should undertake to deal are the result of rapidly 
changing and expanding life of the people. A study 
of the functions of government should precede a 
study of the machinery used in performing the func- 
tions. The plan of beginning to study civics with 
a study of governmental machinery is on a plane 
with introducing a student to a study of physiology 
with a lesson on the bones. 

The first question for consideration in a course in Functions of 
civics is what the people in small groups and in large should 
groups need to have done through a form of coop- receive . 
eration which we call government. Any amount of 
detail concerning means without an appreciation and 
understanding of the end sought, will not result in an 
understanding of civic rights and duties. More than 
this, such emphasis upon the machinery leads to a 
wrong conception of government, the very thing to be 



120 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

avoided. A right attitude toward government is the 
most important result of civics instruction, 
importance Not only is the functional viewpoint the one from 
government which to begin the study of civics, but the functions 
which are undertaken by small groups should have 
first attention. These are, as a matter of fact, the 
most important functions and they furnish concrete 
situations that can be studied at first hand. There 
are certain things that need to be done in which all 
are more or less concerned and in the very nature of 
things they can be done better through group coopera- 
tion than through individual effort. Maintenance of 
schools, road building, care of the poor, protection 
against infectious diseases, are some of the public 
undertakings that can be studied in the immediate 
environment of the school. From the study of these 
it will be demonstrated that governmental responsibili- 
ties are of more than mere local concern and that other 
functions belong in the main to larger group coop- 
erations. The study of these simpler undertakings gives 
the only fruitful point of view from which to study the 
machinery through which governmental functions in 
general are performed. 
Too much The study of civics was introduced into the schools 

been^ven 38 under a mistaken notion. It was thought that mere 
to govern- knowledge of constitutions and laws and details of 
machinery governmental machinery would insure a patriotic 
spirit and an intelligent exercise of the privileges of 
citizenship. This theory is no longer held, but the old 
practice resulting from this theory has persisted up to 
the present time. This idea regarding the importance 
of governmental machinery has not been confined to 



THE SOCIAL STUDIES 121 

the schools. We have been persistently multiplying 
laws and changing governmental machinery to the 
neglect of the study of the nature and importance 
of governmental functions. As a result of this wrong 
emphasis, we have largely neglected the means neces- 
sary to the development of a proper civic spirit to 
insure respect for obedience to the laws. Fortu- 
nately a change is taking place in the social con- 
sciousness, and the secondary school should lead in 
this movement to secure a more vital and virile type 
of civic righteousness. 

A detailed discussion of the character of subject Fac * s . 
matter to be chosen cannot be given here. A few i 0C ai 
points of emphasis will be noted. A knowledge of g° vernment 
the details concerning how laws are enacted is less 
valuable than a knowledge of what the laws are as 
they relate to making roads, conducting schools, and 
levying and collecting taxes. The duties of local 
officers should have fuller consideration than the 
duties of the officers of the state and nation. School 
boards, township trustees, and county commissioners 
expend by far the largest amount of money collected 
in taxes. A knowledge of the duties of an assessor is 
quite as necessary to an intelligent selection of a man 
to perform these duties as is the knowledge of the 
duties of the governor of the state in making selection 
for that office. In considering the larger political 
units, a study of the machinery of government used 
in matters relating directly to the people should be 
emphasized. The method of operating the postal 
system is a matter of far more general concern than is 
the federal judicial system. If we would render in- 



122 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



practical 



struction in civics practical we must deal with the 
practical phases of the subject, 
instruction The subject matter of civics properly selected and 
concrete and presented does not need to wait for application until 
school days are over. The problem of government in 
the school is one of the real problems always present 
and not infrequently very perplexing. The subject 
matter of civics may be made to bear directly upon 
this problem and to aid in its solution. Rights, duties, 
and obligations of citizens can thus be made concrete 
and become real problems, the solution of which be- 
comes a matter of practical experience. To overlook 
the opportunity of thus correlating theory and practice 
is to neglect, on the one hand, a valuable aid to con- 
trol within the school and, on the other hand, it is to 
refuse the opportunity to make civic instruction con- 
crete and practical. 

The purpose of the study of social science is to ac- 
quire a knowledge of the present social process and to 
develop a proper attitude toward it. The study of the 
past is valuable for this purpose if subject matter is 
selected in accordance with the aim. But the value 
of this material should not make us unmindful of the 
importance of the study of society as it now is. One 
of the valuable results of instruction should be the 
creation of an intelligent interest in current events, 
and the securing of methods of interpreting them. 
No method is so fruitful for accomplishing this as' 
the use of material dealing with present affairs. It 
is useful to know the powers of congress as defined in 
the constitution, but it is more to the point to know 
how congress is exercising these powers at the present 



Importance 
of study of 
current 
events 



THE SOCIAL STUDIES 123 

time. Some knowledge of judicial systems is valu- 
able, but to neglect to use this information as a means 
of ascertaining what the courts are actually doing 
now in giving judicial interpretation to social ques- 
tions is to fail to make right use of opportunity. No 
amount of information of mere legal procedure as 
embodied in constitutions and statutes will result in 
an intelligent appreciation of the value of a judicial 
system. Economic problems are present problems and 
what is going on in the present is a matter of vital con- 
cern. The student should have the historical basis for 
his study, but experience in the study of present eco- 
nomic forces and conditions is of extreme practical 
value. Current events wisely selected, and intelligently 
presented, should constitute an important part of the 
material in social science instruction. 

The material that we have selected as the center social 
around which to organize the curriculum has been studies 
selected not only because of the value of its content standpoint 
as such. It serves also to give what we have con- materiaTin^ 
ceived to be the proper standpoint from which to select other fields 
other material and from which to organize all the 
material selected into a unified and workable whole. 
This standpoint carried over into other fields, will 
enable us to select within these fields the material 
that will contribute most in its way to the realization 
of the ends sought in high school instruction. And 
it is important to emphasize at this point two con- 
siderations. First, that each field does contribute, 
if at all, in its own way; and second, whether or not 
it does contribute even in its own way, is determined 
by the type of material selected in any particular field. 



124 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

An effort has been made to make these two points 
clear in the discussion of social science. The social 
studies will not accomplish all the ends of education. 
Neither will the teaching of any other subject. It is 
readily conceivable that a type of material could be se- 
lected in history or economics or civics that would con- 
tribute very little, if indeed at all, to the realization of 
the ends to be gained through instruction. The same 
may be said of material science, English, mathematics, 
language, or any other field from which we may choose 
to select material for a secondary school curriculum. 
No difficulty is experienced in understanding that 
material which would be highly useful for a special 
type of education, would have little value for purposes 
of high school instruction. All subject matter must 
meet the test of the requirements of the needs, inter- 
ests, and capacities of high school students. 



CHAPTER XII 

MATERIAL SCIENCE 

No more valuable material is available for high school importance 
instruction than that found in the field of material edgeoT" 
science. The subject matter is concrete, and provides science 
a kind of intellectual environment to which the high 
school students can make sympathetic response. The 
knowledge that may be gained in this field bears such 
vital relation both to present needs and to prepara- 
tion for future social efficiency that science material 
is especially valuable for use in the secondary school. 
The purposes served by science instruction cannot be 
realized through instruction of any other kind. Sci- 
entific knowledge is so fundamental to our modern 
conceptions of life and so large a factor in modern 
achievements, that a lack of such knowledge places a 
serious handicap upon the individual. 

Instruction in science has not been as productive unsatisfac- 
as it was hoped it would be by its advocates. For * or yf esults 

r J in science 

several years past, interest in science work has declined, teaching 
and the relative number of students pursuing the sub- 
jects has decreased. The reasons for this decline in 
interest and for disappointment in results, are not 
difficult to find. In the first place, the problem of 
selection of subject matter is a difficult one because so 
much of the available material is not suited to the 
needs and capacities of high school students. In no 



126 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

other field of knowledge is there more danger of making 
wrong selections. It is true, at least, that particu- 
larly unfortunate selections have been made in the 
sciences. In accounting for this we are led to a con- 
sideration of the causes responsible for both the char- 
acter of material in use, and the type of organization 
prevailing. 
Reasons for Opposition to the introduction of science into the 
tory results curriculum was persistent and even violent. The 
church opposed it on religious grounds and the school 
for what were assumed to be educational reasons. 
The colleges for a considerable time refused to accept 
the work done in science in the secondary schools, and 
regarded their own science courses as inferior in value 
to courses in the ancient languages and mathematics. 
These subjects were held to be inferior to the 
humanistic ones because they lacked " disciplinary " 
and " cultural" value. In order that the proper dis- 
tinctions might be made, a special degree was con- 
ferred by the colleges upon those students who elected 
any considerable amount of work in science. This 
distinction in degree was supposed to represent a 
qualitative difference in educational values and this 
fiction persists even in the present. Within college 
circles there is even now a definite and partially suc- 
cessful opposition to an acknowledgment that scientific 
subjects have the same educational value as the old 
humanistic ones. This opposition is growing less and 
less powerful, and we should not be concerned with it 
here except for the fact that it accounts in part for 
the present unsatisfactory results from instruction in 
science. 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 127 

Science, in order to gain and hold a place in the Unfortunate 
curriculum, had to justify itself on disciplinary JJe^dte- 
grounds. It had to find a place in the curriculum by "pUnary 

. . , J conception" 

conforming to the requirements of the predominant 
educational ideal. Only so far as it could be made 
to conform in content and organization to this ideal 
was it regarded as possessing educative value. Hence, 
makers of textbooks and teachers hastened to accept 
these requirements upon the subjects and undertook 
to meet the demands set up by the influences domi- 
nating the schools. Authors of textbooks in science 
regarded it necessary to defend in the prefaces of 
their books, both the subject matter selected and 
the organization of it, from the standpoint of disci- 
plinary values. Teachers felt it incumbent upon 
them in their emphasis and presentation to justify 
both their subject matter and their teaching in 
terms of these same values. Thus an attempt was 
made to compel science to make a contribution toward 
the realization of an educational aim possessing doubt- 
ful validity. And further, it was required to make a 
contribution having even less value than other contri- 
butions that it is capable of making. This attempt 
has been persisted in, placing the sciences at a disad- 
vantage, and much yet remains to be done before we 
shall have gotten entirely away from the consequent 
misconceptions of the real values inherent in this 
kind of material. 

Another influence which has been more or less a influence of 
part of that discussed in the preceding paragraph has j|"s been 
been exerted by scientists themselves. This influence, detrimental 
more than any other, has been responsible for the 



128 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



barrenness of instruction in science. It is apparent 
from textbooks and from the details of courses in 
science that it has been assumed that scientific method 
and scientific material are quite apart from ordinary- 
methods of thought, on the one hand, and the ordi- 
nary things of life, on the other hand. The scientific 
method has been confused apparently with an extremely 
logical method which deals with the minutiae of details 
at first hand. Material in order to be scientific must 
be kept free from all suggestion of practical usefulness, 
and its organization must conform to strict require- 
ments of logic. Further than this, it seems that each 
group of scientists have felt that they must build a 
wall about themselves in order to maintain a proper 
degree of professional respectability. So they has- 
tened to divide the field of science into its respective 
parts, and even now the use of the term " general 
science" meets more or less successful opposition. 
The integrity of each science has been maintained to 
the detriment of the interests of the learner. Even 
botany and zoology, which to the layman seem to be 
intimately related, have been kept apart. The out- 
growth of this influence has been a type of subject 
matter unsuited to the needs and capacities of high 
school students, and a degree of specialization that has 
no place in the secondary school. 

Fortunately we are getting away from the concep- 
tions that have resulted from these influences just 
be regarded di scusse d. Whatever of mind training and transfer 

from the t ° 

value is to be derived from instruction in science, this 
is not its greatest value. And whatever value the 
specialist's attitude possesses in other relations, it is 



Science 
material 
should not 



standpoint 
of the 
specialist 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 129 

not the attitude from which to regard this material 
for purposes of instruction in the high school. Herbert 
Spencer gave the proper standpoint from which to re- 
gard science as related to educational values. It is 
unfortunate that his point of view has not been more 
largely accepted. In answer to the question, What 
knowledge is of most worth, he answered that knowl- 
edge of science was of most worth just because of its 
practical value in everyday living. All might not agree 
that this type of knowledge is of most worth. But 
there should be no hesitation in maintaining that its 
greatest worth consists in a contribution to mental 
content and mental technique that will be immediately 
useful in the problems of right living. 

In the selection and organization of material for Needs of 
instruction in the high school, no different standpoint Jeteraaiiie 
should be employed than the one used in considering character of 
the social studies. The aim of high school instruc- organization 
tion in science is a practical one. There are definite 
educational values that can be secured through the 
teaching of science, and the aim of instruction is to 
secure these values. The sciences contain a type of 
material that cannot be found elsewhere in the field 
of human knowledge, and this material should be used 
for the largest values in it. Scientific knowledge as 
such, is not the end sought in teaching. Nor does 
just any type of organization that could be pronounced 
"scientific" necessarily have a high degree of value 
for purposes of instruction. We have put so much em- 
phasis upon the word science and scientific that we are 
apt to be content with names and forms to the neglect 
of real educational values. It does not appear that 



130 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Science 

instruction 

should 

increase 

power in 

control 



Material 
should be 
chosen for 
its content 
value 



we can put too much emphasis upon the fact that we 
must not be satisfied merely with securing a type of 
knowledge or with an organization of that knowledge 
that will merely meet with what we call "scientific" 
standards. The mind of the learner is the point of 
view from which to regard the material and its organi- 
zation. It is very much more important, after all, 
that our organization be psychological rather than 
scientific, provided that it cannot be both. It is no 
less important that the knowledge gained shall be im- 
mediately useful, even though it might not measure 
up to all the requirements of "scientific" knowledge. 
Fortunately, however, the words useful and psycho- 
logical need not be set over against the word scientific. 
The terms are not mutually exclusive. 

The practical character of scientific knowledge is 
what renders it so important as an educational means. 
Its chief value lies in the control that it gives its pos- 
sessor over his environment. Scientific control as op- 
posed to unscientific, is what really distinguishes an 
educated person from an uneducated one. Refinement 
of tastes and development of ideals are necessary re- 
sults of high school instruction, but unless control is 
promoted the individual will be quite as helpless in the 
presence of the realities of life as if he had not spent 
four years in high school. We should define education 
in terms of the difference it makes in the individual. 
The contribution that science has to make to this differ- 
ence, is increased power in control over environment. 

Subject matter in science should be chosen for its 
content value. No other basis of selection will secure 
the material best suited to the needs of high school 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 131 

students. The chief aim in the study of science is to 
acquire a body of knowledge immediately useful in 
daily living. The learner should be taught to observe, 
and verify, and be encouraged to find out things for 
himself. One of the results of science instruction 
should be the development of a scientific attitude 
toward environment. But the material used in in- 
struction should be such that the knowledge gained 
is valuable in itself. It would be interesting if we 
could know how many generations of high school 
students have analyzed the same kind of botanical 
specimens in precisely the same way, and how little 
it has all amounted to. The fumes of ill-ventilated, 
cluttered-up, chemical laboratories have been inhaled 
by succeeding generations of students long enough 
to warrant us in checking up to find out what has 
happened. It is now in order to ascertain how much 
harm to health has resulted and whether anything of 
real value has been contributed to the power of right 
living. This is not an attack upon laboratory methods, 
or upon the laudable desire on the part of teachers to 
develop in their pupils the spirit of inquiry and inves- 
tigation. But it is a protest against the unscientific 
instruction which, in the name of science, has too largely 
predominated in the work of the secondary school. 
Scientific instruction, under whatever name it may be 
given, should make its contribution, first of all, to the 
ability of the learner to live his life better than he 
could have lived it without the instruction. 

This practical aspect of scientific knowledge cannot values 
receive too much emphasis. A knowledge of the sho ^ d 

r ° receive 

properties of foods and of drinking water and of other emphasis 



132 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Instruction 
should 
furnish 
motive for 
learning 



things pertaining to the needs and daily experiences, 
need be no less scientific because it is useful. An in- 
vestigation carried on for the purpose of making practi- 
cal discoveries in the field of science, requires a method 
no less scientific than does research in order to find out 
something in which no one will be particularly inter- 
ested. A knowledge of the structure of the earth- 
worm and the frog, the amoeba and the clam is no 
doubt of value to the specialist. But high school 
students have but little interest in that kind of knowl- 
edge and still less use for it. They need to know some- 
thing of animal life. What concerns them is not 
structure of lower forms, but habits of life and useful- 
ness of higher forms and how these may be made more 
useful by proper breeding and good care. This kind 
of knowledge will be valuable to them in getting on 
in the world, and in cooperating with their fellows in 
promoting social welfare. 

One of the fallacies underlying a great deal of our 
instruction in science, has been the assumption that 
the chief business of the educated person should be 
and will be the acquiring of more knowledge of a tech- 
nical kind. The fact is, however, the average person 
will be concerned with the acquiring of more knowl- 
edge of a practical kind and with applying his knowledge 
to the solution of his everyday problems. This is 
not denying the importance of the work of the school 
in an attempt to cultivate in the mind of the learner 
the desire to acquire more knowledge, and to help him 
to develop methods for acquiring it. But this does 
not make less true that the practical view of knowl- 
edge, is of highest value even for this purpose. We 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 133 

might wish that our students would go on acquiring 
knowledge because of the thirst they have for it, and 
because of the mental satisfaction they get out of the 
process of acquiring it. But the fact is, that they are 
just like we are and will not do anything of the kind. 
For some reason, this is the way of life. 

The desire for knowledge arises naturally out of a source of 
practical need for it. While we are providing avenues J^ 81 *® *? r 
through which knowledge may come in, it is also 
necessary to provide avenues through which this 
knowledge and other to be acquired, may go out, 
functioning in supplying the needs of the common 
day. The learning process will be continued after 
school days are over, largely in proportion to the ex- 
tent to which the immediate value of knowledge has 
been made clear to the mind of the learner. To put 
the learner thus concretely in contact with the de- 
mands that will be made upon his intelligence is, after 
all, the most fruitful way of inculcating in him the de- 
sire and the disposition to have his intelligence become 
commensurate with the demands which will be made 
upon it. To abstract the real values from knowledge in 
the name of " scholarship," on the one hand, or "pure 
science" on the other, is one of the absurdities borrowed 
from the schoolmen of other times and should have 
been discredited long ago. We continue to learn in 
proportion to a sense of realization that learning and 
successful living go together. 

The high school should seek, first of all, to promote Science in- 
the physical welfare of young people. Instruction in and physical 
science is one of the ways in which this can be realized. welfare 
The instruction should supply the means in such prac- 



i 3 4 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

tical, concrete, and compelling way that all who come 
within the influence of the school will be benefited. 
A knowledge of one's own body and the right attitude 
toward its care are fundamental to physical welfare. 
The vital processes of life — digestive, respiratory, 
circulatory, sexual — should be understood and the 
knowledge applied to daily living. The biological 
sciences are particularly abundant in material for pur- 
poses of instruction. The sciences have important 
contributions to make that do not immediately relate 
to health and physical efficiency. But if they do not 
contribute to intelligence regarding these things, their 
most important contribution is neglected. The first 
test that should be applied to ascertain whether an 
individual is scientifically trained, is whether he is 
living scientifically. If he lacks knowledge concern- 
ing his body, or does not manifest an intelligent concern 
regarding its care, it cannot be said that he is scien- 
tifically trained. One who is so trained has such 
control of himself and of his environment, that he is 
able to secure and maintain a high degree of physical 
efficiency. 
Knowledge It is of course evident that a knowledge of the func- 
environment tional aspects of the body is not in itself sufficient. 
One must have control over his physical environment 
in order to supply his needs and to develop his capaci- 
ties. A knowledge of physiological processes in the 
absence of knowledge of one's physical environment as 
related to right living, is of little value. One of the 
causes of the barrenness of instruction in physiology 
has been the mistaken notion that mere facts concern- 
ing digestion, respiration, circulation, and anatomical 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 135 

structure can be relied upon to secure right living. A 
knowledge of the body in relation to its environment is 
required. Properties of food, modes of cooking, sanita- 
tion, light, ventilation, and things of like nature must 
be known in order to give to the information concern- 
ing bodily structure and functions its meaning and 
its value. What we shall call this subject matter is not 
important. But that we recognize its superior value 
is of large significance. Instruction in science should 
result in a higher aesthetic appreciation of nature. But 
after all, the thing of greatest and most immediate 
value is such control over one's physical environment 
as will result in a strong, vigorous and healthy 
body. 

In the discussion of the function of the high school Science 
emphasis was placed upon the importance of vocational an d 
interests. In the selection of subject matter in science, y ocational 

J m 7 interests 

these interests should be taken into account. The 
sciences contain abundant material useful for this 
purpose, and this should be substituted for much of 
the subject matter now in use. The words agricul- 
tural, industrial, commercial, economic, as applied to 
botany, physics, chemistry, and the earth sciences, 
indicate the kind of material in which the pupil will 
be interested. This will also constitute a kind of 
intellectual environment the response to which will 
result in stimulating vocational interests and in 
rendering these interests intelligent. No more fruitful 
means can be chosen to assist young people to appre- 
ciate their industrial environment and to interpret 
that environment in terms of its social meaning. One 
of the fundamental principles of modern education is 



136 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

that the school should constitute, as far as possible, 
an environment similar to that supplied by the com- 
munity. The school environment differs, however, 
from the community environment in that the former 
is organized for purposes of education and controlled 
specifically for educational purposes. What we call 
the practical in science, helps to furnish such environ- 
ment so organized and controlled. 
Preparation The type of instruction in science indicated in the 
vocational preceding paragraph is desirable apart from any 
activities relation that it may have to preparation for specific 
lines of vocational activity. It constitutes a neces- 
sary part of the work of the school in the effort to 
develop the powers and capacities of our youth. But 
such instruction also bears relation to meeting social 
demands, industrial and otherwise, made upon the 
school. There are some subjects that in the very 
nature of the case can furnish but little preparation 
to meet these demands. The field of science, on the 
other hand, possesses abundant material for such pur- 
pose. The boy who will work on the farm or in the 
shop or factory can be given a training in science that 
will be of great value to him. The importance of 
a knowledge of science as it relates to the manage- 
ment and care of the home is readily seen. The train- 
ing of the girl for the duties of the home must include 
instruction in science of the same practical kind as 
that which is given to the boy to prepare him for his 
work. In no work that the school undertakes to 
do, should it take into account so much the needs 
and interests of girls as it does in instruction in 
science. 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 137 

The emphasis upon these phases of the subject, Science 

. . . instruction 

gives a basis for work in science that permits other and right 
than immediately practical aims to be realized. One attitudes 
of the aims of science instruction is to help adolescents 
to understand the meaning and value of law as it 
relates to life. The learning of the mere fact that law 
does prevail in the universe is futile. Only when it is 
known that health and happiness and prosperity and 
usefulness depend upon obedience to the laws of 
nature does respect for law become a reality. This 
can be accomplished only by the use of a kind of sub- 
ject matter that will reveal these laws as they operate 
in the commonplace things of life. A knowledge of 
the causes of earthquakes or of volcanoes can add 
nothing to one's power of control over himself or his 
environment. A knowledge of unsanitary conditions 
that cause disease or of the causes of poor crops will 
give control resulting in health and in abundant crops. 
A knowledge that health and pure water and whole- 
some food are caused by the operation of laws will 
result in an understanding that this is a law-controlled 
universe. 

The emphasis upon the value of the practical in Deveiop- 
science teaching is not to be interpreted as meaning me ?* of 

c ° social per- 

that it lacks social value. On the contrary, a high ceptions 
degree of social efficiency in our day is scarcely possible 
in the absence of a knowledge of science. Scientific 
method is necessary in every line in which we are seek- 
ing to promote social progress. In order to relate the 
knowledge and the method to the social problems of 
our time, instruction in science must be broader than 
the merely personal aspect. Health is a social asset 



138 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

and disease a social menace. The one who in this 
day is concerned only in the development and care 
of his own body is no less unsocial than the recluse of 
the middle ages who was anxious only for the salva- 
tion of his own soul. Instruction in science should be 
made to contribute to the development of one's social 
perceptions and to his ability to render social service. 
Scientific The scientific attitude upon which so much stress 

social spirit has been placed is only beginning to manifest itself 
as related to the solution of our great social problems. 
Poverty, vice, and crime — the great social diseases — 
demand scientific treatment. In order to treat them 
thus, we shall have to depend upon science to yield the 
knowledge. If our instruction in science has been 
materialistic and impersonal, it must cease so to be. 
Subject matter must be chosen and applications of the 
knowledge gained therefrom be so made that the 
instruction will become essentially ethical and social. 
The scientific spirit is in truth the social spirit. It 
seeks truth not for its own sake, but for the welfare 
of society. Instruction in the high school should 
inculcate this spirit. It cannot be done by merely 
talking about it in the class-room or laboratory. It can 
be done only by establishing the relation between the 
thing learned and its social value. 
Need of The high school is so limited as to time and often as 

the P practicS to ec l u ip ment that the work may fall short of what has 
been proposed. The only way out of the difficulty is 
to select the things to be accomplished in the order of 
their importance and in view of the limitation upon 
equipment. Knowledge of science, like other knowl- 
edge, in order to be power, must function in those 



MATERIAL SCIENCE 139 

relations where the vital issues of life are involved. 
If a school can offer but little instruction in science 
there is all the more need that it be practical. 

The proper organization of the material of instruc- Material 
tion in science is no less important than its selection, organization 
The problem is considerably simplified, however, by 
keeping the practical viewpoint in mind. Whether 
we shall continue to organize the material into definite 
groups and give these groups the same names they now 
bear is not important. Botany, chemistry, physics, 
and so on are valuable terms only when they designate 
types of subject matter having practical value for use 
in the high school. Science instruction has suffered 
as a result of too much emphasis upon the organization 
of material from the standpoint of narrow and technical 
scientific classification. If old divisions and old names 
interfere with the type of organization most useful, 
then they must give way or be reconstructed. Points 
of view from which to select material are more impor- 
tant than either divisions or names. The most insis- 
tent needs of the learner and not the convenience of 
textbook makers and teachers should determine the 
organization. It may be that we shall finally drop old 
names and substitute some such designation as first 
year science, and second year science. If this should 
result in breaking down the walls built up around the 
sciences, the change would be welcome. 

In our effort to make our instruction more fruitful importance 
we must not, however, go to the other extreme and ^SuSStkm 
neglect to organize the material we attempt to teach. 
The term "general science" is now being employed 
and it may or may not be a useful term. If it means, 



140 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

as its opponents assert, that we have substituted a 
hodge-podge of unrelated material for certain units 
of well-organized material, then the term is unfor- 
tunate. On the other hand, if it signifies that subject 
matter has been selected from the several practical 
viewpoints and organized in accordance with the needs 
of the learner, the name serves a useful purpose. If 
a student can study science but one year, it is desirable 
that he secure what is of most value to him from two 
or three fields rather than devote the time to one 
subject, such as botany, physics, or chemistry. We 
should not fear the accusation that we are giving only 
a smattering if the instruction is more successful than 
the time-honored arrangement is able to secure. The 
necessity for more fruitful results in the teaching of 
science is generally recognized. Any means that will 
be productive in securing such results will be welcomed 
by high school teachers. 



CHAPTER XIII 
ENGLISH 

The position in the curriculum occupied by English Plac e of 

• -n- • rf. w 4- 4. I,* u 11 t- l, EngUsh in 

is unique. It is the one subject taught by all high the 
schools and is required in most schools throughout the cumculum 
course. No electives are placed over against it. It 
is assumed that nothing can take its place because it 
performs a service that no .other subject can perform. 
It is secure in its place and few would have less em- 
phasis placed upon it than it now receives. The very 
fact, however, of its security renders it all the more 
necessary that it shall be made to perform a service 
commensurate with the attention it receives. 

The place that English now holds has been gained The work 
in little more than a half century; and the preeminent recently 
position that it now occupies dates back less than givenan 

important 

twenty-five years. In tracing the development of the place 
subject, one is struck by the increased importance 
attached to it. The earlier practice was not to in- 
clude English in the Classical Course, or if included, 
little attention was given to it. A parallel course, 
usually called the English Course or General Course, 
was provided and in this course more emphasis was 
placed upon English instruction. The colleges neither 
required it nor gave credit for it as an elective. As 
late as 1890, many of the higher institutions required 



142 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

but a year and a half of English for entrance. It is 
only recently that a teacher of English has been re- 
quired to make special preparation for teaching it. 
For many years it was assumed that no special prepara- 
tion was necessary, and the work was parceled out 
among the teachers in accordance with administrative 
convenience. It came into the curriculum as a result 
of social demands, and it suffered the prejudice com- 
mon to all the so-called practical subjects. The tend- 
ency in the earlier years on the part of the schools to 
regard English rather indifferently resulted in a very 
slow development in English instruction. No particu- 
lar social or economic interests exerted an influence 
except the commercial interests. This influence, how- 
ever, has never been a large factor in determining the 
subject matter of English and other influences are 
responsible both for the large place that the subject 
now occupies and also for the character of the instruc- 
tion given, 
influence of The prevailing educational theory, that of formal 
discipline" discipline, soon made itself felt on instruction in 
English. In the earlier schools the students who 
pursued English did so as an elective for Greek and 
Latin. It was assumed that since they could not 
secure the advantages supposed to result from the study 
of the classics, it was necessary to make the English 
language supply the lack of instruction in the ancient 
languages as far as this was possible. English gram- 
mar was studied largely for its "disciplinary" value 
and literature for its "cultural" value. Rhetoric, a 
subject inherited from the earlier schools, remained 
undivorced from logic. Composition received scant 



ENGLISH 143 

attention and little information is available regarding 
details of instruction. The result of the influence of 
the predominant educational theory is found in instruc- 
tion in English at the present time. 

The influence more responsible than any other f or*the influence of 
character of our work in English is that of higher in- Institutions 
stitutions. Perhaps no other type of subject matter in 
our secondary curriculums, has been so largely deter- 
mined by these institutions. The teachers of English in 
the higher schools, through college entrance requirements 
and through the training of teachers, have practically 
determined what has been taught in the high schools. 
This influence has had much to do with stimulating 
the study of English and of giving to it its preeminent 
place in the curriculum. To them is due the credit for 
giving to English the place that rightfully belongs to 
it, but at the same time they have been responsible for 
not a little of the unfruitfulness of instruction. 

This predominant influence exerted by higher insti- Result of 
tutions has given rise to some unfortunate conditions, influence 
It has resulted in a formalism in instruction and in 
wrong emphasis upon certain phases of the work. In 
consequence the needs and interests of high school 
students have been neglected and social demands have 
been in too large measure ignored. Reform is needed 
in our English work in order to fit it more nearly to the 
capacities of students and to make it serve the interests 
of the community. 

The fact that English has a secure place in the cur- Results in 
riculum has been noted. Another fact of equal signiri- Jj^^^a" 
cance is that there is general dissatisfaction with the tory 
work being done in English in the high school. Whether 



144 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

the dissatisfaction is wholly justified may be open to 
question. But the conviction that the work is not 
what it should be is quite general and complaints 
cannot be ignored. The pupils themselves are more 
or less rebellious and failures in the work are common. 
Teachers in higher institutions are loud in their lamen- 
tations over the character of the work done in the 
high school. Business men have in general ceased to 
look to the high school for very much in the way of 
preparing for business and commercial pursuits. When 
there is such apparent general dissatisfaction there is 
probably a degree of truth in some or all of the criti- 
cisms directed against the kind of instruction given. 
This condition furnishes sufficient reason for a revalua- 
tion of the means used in instruction, 
of the In the selection of material in English it is necessary 

formand to k ee P * n mm d that we have to deal with two aspects 
content of the subject, form and content. There is the lan- 
guage side and the literature side. It needs no argu- 
ment to establish that literature, if wisely selected and 
properly taught, is one of the principal repositories 
of human valuations that have been worked out in 
the experience of the race. And it is equally clear that 
language is the chief means of social control. These 
two phases of the subject, intimately related and 
interdependent, are merely two standpoints from which 
to regard the whole field from which material is to 
be selected. Whether we shall return to the distinct 
classification made some years ago — grammar, com- 
position, rhetoric, and literature — is not important. 
But it is necessary to keep our attention directed to 
the two points of view from which to regard the ma- 



ENGLISH 145 

terial. To give our attention to the form without due 
reference to the content, or vice versa, is to fail to 
understand the vital contributions that the study of 
English should make to the efficiency of the individual. 
To pronounce instruction good or bad from either point 
of view alone has no justification. If the business man 
declares that the English instruction in the high school 
has no value just because its graduates do not have 
a complete knowledge of the rather highly technical 
forms of business correspondence, he should not be 
taken too seriously. Or if the college teacher makes 
the same pronouncement because the student cannot 
write a highly technical criticism of a piece of litera- 
ture from the standpoint of its form, his judgment 
is not to be taken as final. The student of English 
during his high school course should receive some in- 
struction in business correspondence. This is a neces- 
sary part of the work of the school. He should have 
some experience in literary criticism in order that he 
may develop appreciation of literary merit. But to 
judge English instruction from either of these or from 
any other highly specialized point of view, does not 
lead to a fair judgment upon the efficiency of the work 
done. 

Other aims than these must be taken into account. English 
The aim of English instruction should be to furnish jjj^a on 
such social environment on its intellectual side as will furnish 
serve, on the one hand, to stimulate and arouse social environment 
instincts and impulses and, on the other hand, to give 
opportunity for the expression of these through proper 
language forms. The content of the subject matter 
and not its form, however, is the important thing. The 



146 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

peculiar advantage possessed by literature is that of 
its social content. Whether the theme is one that deals 
with actual social situations or not, the literature that 
has lived has done so because of its portrayal of the 
abiding human interests. This is what constitutes its 
appeal to young people. It is true to say that litera- 
ture is life, if the human element in it is thus made 
prominent. To exalt form over content results only 
in making study irksome, instruction barren, and re- 
sults fruitless. The field is rich in material that can 
be made to contribute both to an increased appre- 
ciation of human values, aesthetic, moral, ethical, and 
to increased power to realize these values. 
Emphasis For purposes of high school instruction, unless 

rather° ° material is worth while because of its content, no 

than upon refinement of form or technique in expression can 
form values e g ^ r 

justify its use. Literary value from our point of view 

is human value. And we must, of course, judge values 
from the point of view of the interests and capacities 
of the learner and not from the standpoint of the intel- 
lectual satisfaction which the specialist may be able 
to derive from the study of a masterpiece. The chief 
purpose of teaching literature is not to give a taste for 
good literature. To develop an interest in books is, 
after all, secondary. It is rather to develop those 
personal attitudes toward the great values in human 
life that will enable one better to appreciate these 
values in life as it is lived all about him, and to 
discriminate more carefully in the selection of those 
values which he wishes to realize in his own life. 
The study of poetry, for example, is not primarily for 
the purpose of giving to the individual certain emo- 



ENGLISH 147 

tional satisfactions or of making him a mere critic of 
literary forms. But the purpose is rather to give him 
the poet's attitude toward life as found in the social 
process and in the processes of nature in the world 
about him. The aim in the study of fiction is not 
chiefly to discover plots and to furnish opportunity to 
criticise literary forms. But it is rather to give one 
a clearer insight into the great human motives that 
have prompted and dominated men and still prompt 
and dominate us in our upward way in the process of 
civilization. Here again the chief purpose is not to 
create an interest in good fiction. The aim is to give 
an insight into human life as it is lived in social rela- 
tions and to inculcate a desire for the better things of 
life as they are revealed in the associations of men 
and women all about us. 

The problem of the selection of material involves interests 
an intimate and sympathetic knowledge of the interests capacities of 
and capacities of the learner and a knowledge of what ^ted*: &S 
subject matter is best suited to him. It is important material 
to establish a point of contact with the experience of 
those who are taught. We have to begin with what 
the pupil knows, with what he feels, with what he 
wills; with his attitudes, his valuations of life as 
they actually are. However much we might wish 
to give him our own point of view, we have to take 
him as we find him. Emphasis is placed upon this 
fact here because not a little of the barrenness of 
results in teaching literature is due to the failure 
to recognize that we cannot give to another what he 
does not want and has no capacity in the content 
of his own experience to receive. A good deal of 



148 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Content 
must 
include 
more than 
mere liter- 
ary content 



time has been wasted in the attempt to teach "good 
literature" because the "goodness" of it has been 
judged from a point of view which the learner has not 
been able to appreciate and understand. Whatever 
the philosophical truth about the matter may be, the 
pedagogical fact is that goodness and beauty are sub- 
jective values. This is not intended to convey the 
notion that we are to accept present values as the 
ones that the pupil is to hold finally. But they are 
the values that must be accepted as starting points 
from which we may lead him to come into possession 
of other values that we desire him to appreciate and 
realize in his own life. The use of the words high 
standards and low standards in respect to literary 
tastes are sometimes misleading. The vital question 
is not how high or how low a standard may be, judged 
by adult experience, but how useful it is to accomplish 
the purpose of instruction. In the name of high 
standards in English teaching it has too frequently 
happened that we are trying to begin where we have 
a right only to hope that we may finally leave off. 

The criteria for selection already pointed out, indi- 
cate the points of view from which material must be 
judged. The varying circumstances and conditions 
of life from which the pupils come into the high 
school, will necessitate a rather wide range of selection. 
Fortunately the field of literature furnishes abundant 
opportunity for making this selection wisely. At this 
point attention needs to be called to the restricted 
meaning that we are apt to apply to content. The 
fields of social science and material science and those 
including the arts are rich in material having highly 



ENGLISH 149 

valuable content. If this material is examined from 
the standpoint of literary form, it meets every re- 
quirement. Some of the material selected by college 
entrance boards and committees of English teachers 
leads one to believe that these authorities are in sore 
straits to find suitable subject matter. While if they 
were to go into the fields suggested above, abundant 
material could be found which if judged both as to con- 
tent and form would prove to be highly useful in 
English instruction. Until such time as these authori- 
ties give this larger and more vital meaning to the 
content of the subject it would be profitable if more 
teachers of English would do a little foraging on their 
own account. The wall built up around literature 
should be torn down and much included in the field that 
is now regarded as belonging exclusively to other fields. 

Current literature of the right kind is not receiving importance 
the attention that it should have. The fact that current* 
much of this is not worthy of consideration makes it literature 
all the more necessary that the youth should be given 
experience in discrimination. In order to keep in 
touch with the life of his day and generation he will 
need to be an appreciative and discriminating reader 
of its literature. In so far as literature moulds the 
opinions of any generation, this is largely accomplished 
through the literature that that generation itself pro- 
duces. The word literature is used here in the more 
inclusive sense indicated in the preceding paragraph. 
It is true that rightly planned courses in the social 
studies and in material science will include some of this 
material, but the teachers of these subjects have no 
exclusive rights. The material is abundant and use 



i5° 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Pupils 
should be 
encouraged 
to read 
widely 



One aim of 

teaching to 
inculcate 
habit of J 
reading 



of it by English teachers will do much to relate the 
English work to the other work of the school. 

One valid criticism that can be made against the 
work done in the high school is that pupils do not read 
enough. The methods employed call for such analyt- 
ical study that the pupils drone over an assignment 
until all interest is lost. The practice is to designate 
a small list for critical study and this is supplemented 
by another list that is supposed to be read in addition 
to regular class assignments. But the method em- 
ployed in reading the designated list is such as to 
render it impossible to carry it over into practice for 
general reading. More than this, the critical method 
is so deadening in its influence that any natural desire 
to read is apt to be inhibited. A much wider range of 
reading than the present practice requires or even 
allows should be secured. The wider range of reading 
will appeal to the varied needs and abilities of the 
students and will bring them into contact with a range 
of social valuations in which they have interest. To 
accomplish this requires no less ability on the part of 
teachers in the selection of material, nor does it re- 
quire less intelligent direction by them. It requires 
both more knowledge in making selection and more 
skill in directing the work than now obtains. If it 
be true as claimed that students are now reading all 
that the time will permit, the answer is that too much 
time is now employed in over-emphasis upon a critical 
study of the restricted body of material used. 

The chief aim of teaching literature is not to create 
a taste for good literature. Nevertheless, one of the 
results, and a highly valuable result of teaching it, 



ENGLISH 151 

should be a growing interest in literature itself. This 
cannot be hoped for, however, if the material selected 
for use in the school is not such as to encourage reading, 
and if methods employed do not permit pupils to read 
widely while in school. The desire to read, if it func- 
tions after pupils leave school, means that they shall 
have formed the habit of reading. The building up 
of such habits in school has a distinctive value on the 
social side. In almost all lines of vocational activity 
there is an increasing volume of literature dealing 
with the interests of workers. Society has no way 
of demanding outright that those engaged in these 
activities shall read, but its demand for a continually 
increasing efficiency is in itself an implied demand. 
The school should take this into account and endeavor 
to meet it. 

One of the results of cultivating a taste for good English 
literature is to provide an agreeable and valuable should pre- 
means of employing leisure time. In the selection p^efor 

. . leisure 

of material this fact should be kept in mind. When occupation 
the stress and strain of life comes, whether the pupils 
who have been trained in school will employ their 
leisure time in reading at all or whether they will spend 
it in reading good literature, will depend almost entirely 
upon their school training. The emphasis placed upon 
reading as a task may be easily carried to the point 
where reading as a form of pleasure will be lost sight of. 
It should be the ambition of every teacher so to famil- 
iarize his pupils with the great masterpieces that they 
will have acquired proper standards of taste and of 
judgment before leaving school. But observation 
and experience both teach us that this class of litera- 



152 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Correct 
forms of 
expression 
to be em- 
phasized 



ture will not be read to any extent to occupy leisure 
hours. Current productions of both fact and fiction 
are so numerous that the probabilities are that 
much of the leisure time spent in reading will be 
spent in their perusal. Many of these are of 
such high character that no teacher should fail 
to take advantage of the opportunity to create 
an interest in and appreciation for these better 
things. 

Training in the correct and effective use of language 
is one of the important aims to be kept in mind in the 
teaching and study of English. It is not necessary to 
dwell upon the fact that language is the chief means 
through which appreciation is secured and through 
which social control is exercised. The learning of 
mere grammatical forms which, as a matter of fact, 
have little relation to one's ability to interpret others 
or to make himself understood, is of doubtful value. 
Examination of textbooks on grammar and composition 
and rhetoric reveals the large amount of material that 
might be left out and the relatively small amount of 
concrete material actually used to illustrate the prac- 
tical application of what is really essential. An error 
in speech judged by certain abstract literary stand- 
ards is worthy of corrective attention. But after all, 
it is a matter of secondary importance as compared 
with those errors because of which one fails to make 
himself understood. There are certain amenities of 
language that deserve consideration, but they now 
receive consideration out of all proportion to their 
importance. This results in the neglect of other aspects 
of the forms of language that are more important. 



ENGLISH 153 

Emphasis in instruction upon the essentials, and a 
felt necessity on the part of the learners for the knowl- 
edge of these essentials, are conditions requisite to 
successful results. 

This matter of recognition on the part of the pupil of School must 
his immediate need of knowledge of grammatical and motive for 
literary forms is the key to the situation. The student £°^ s ct of 
in his effort to interpret others and to make himself expression 
understood must be made to feel this necessity. The 
pupil's interest in language forms grows out of those 
situations in which he finds himself unable to make 
adjustments and secure control through the tise of 
language as an instrument. This is such a common- 
place fact in the case of the child learning to speak 
that no one would think of controverting it. But we 
frequently neglect to keep this in mind when we 
systematically set about, through formal instruction, 
to aid him in the process. We forget that the stress 
and the strain incident to the learning of a language 
so manifest in the earlier years, no longer exist to any 
considerable extent. By the time the pupil comes to 
the high school, he gets along without much difficulty 
in his usual social environment. He is able to adjust 
himself and to secure control over situations in so far 
as language is an instrument, in a quite satisfac- 
tory way. The environment of the school must 
be made to furnish the stimulus that was fur- 
nished in the earlier years by the home and the 
community. The work in English needs to be 
more closely related to the other work of the school 
and to the demands which this work makes upon 
the student. 



154 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Training in 
expression 
should be 
related to 
present 
needs 



Oral com- 
position 
should re- 
ceive more 
attention 



Training in composition both oral and written is, 
of course, a necessary part of the instruction in English. 
But a motive must be furnished that will enable the 
pupil to express himself gladly, and opportunities 
furnished that will permit him to express himself more 
and more freely. Expression through language and 
dramatic representation is not to be regarded as some- 
thing in which the pupil has an interest apart from his 
present needs and interests. On the contrary, ex- 
pression should be related to life which the pupil is 
endeavoring to interpret and which he finds in litera- 
ture and in his social relations. A keenly felt desire 
for better modes of expression is the best guaranty that 
the pupil will respond to our endeavor to help him 
acquire increasing ability to control the means through 
which expression can be given. 

It is the judgment of competent observers that 
written composition has been given relatively too 
much attention. It is true that in this form of com- 
position there is found the stimulus to exactness and 
an objectivity that permits of criticism and revision 
that is highly valuable. But from the standpoint of 
working out a technique that can be used in the every- 
day relation of life it has relatively less value than has 
practice in oral composition. The latter possesses a 
value far in excess of that of the written form. No 
argument need be made in support of the fact that 
thought and its mode of expression is essentially a 
relation between brain centers. If the most of the 
experience is with written composition, then the paths 
of association will be established with the brain cen- 
ters that control the arm instead of those that control 



ENGLISH 155 

the organs of speech. Ready, correct, and accurate 
speech is simply a matter of habit. And one of the 
purposes of practice in composition is to develop and 
fix this habit. 

It has been mentioned that certain practical aspects instruction 
of English instruction demand consideration. The ti n°snouid 
community cannot rightfully demand that the school be practical 
shall provide what may be termed technical training 
for commercial pursuits to the exclusion of everything 
else. But it does have a right to demand, and the 
young people themselves need to know, irrespective 
of whether they shall ultimately engage in those pur- 
suits, something of the requirements of business corre- 
spondence and something of the content and the form 
of business instruments. This kind of knowledge is 
not only useful for its immediate application in earning 
a livelihood, but it promotes intelligence concerning 
business life and furnishes a fruitful point of contact 
with the business world. 

The interest that adolescents manifest in dramatic importance 
representation gives us a good index of its value in the representa- 
teaching of English, and we can profitably realize upon t">n 
this interest. To attempt to teach some of the great 
masterpieces which we use in our instruction, with- 
out taking advantage of this interest, is to neglect 
one of the chief means of making the teaching of 
English effective. It furnishes a group situation that 
is highly stimulating and gives at the same time oppor- 
tunities for instinctive modes of expression that are 
seeking an outlet. A situation that permits of co- 
operation, furnishes a common interest, compels the 
assumption of responsibility, and provides tests of 



i56 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Wide read- 
ing increases 
power of 
expression 



Necessity 
for correla- 
tion of 
English and 
other work 
of the school 



efficiency that can be appreciated and understood by 
the pupils themselves, is extremely useful. When we 
add to this the opportunity offered for expression 
through voice and gesture and bodily attitudes, we 
have a situation both as to stimulus and response, that 
heightens appreciation of literature. There are so 
many requirements of the school which in a sense 
isolate the pupil from his fellows in his work that it 
is desirable to take advantage of every opportunity 
to secure group activity. 

The suggestions offered regarding the selection and 
use of subject matter should be noted here in relation 
to composition work. A wide range of reading, when it 
includes historical and scientific as well as literary 
content, furnishes material for composition work and 
at the same time provides a stimulus to expression. 
More than this, contact with the large range of material 
is a great aid in acquiring a technique in expression. 
In given cases, experience has shown that students 
who in earlier years have been required to write 
much are not as free in giving expression in the later 
years of the course as other pupils of the same class, 
who have been required to write but little and have 
been encouraged to read much. Further than this, 
the latter have also shown a better knowledge of gram- 
matical and literary forms and have displayed a better 
technique in expression. 

One of the outstanding needs in connection with 
English teaching is its better correlation with other 
subjects. This is needed in connection with the work 
as it relates to both literature and composition. There 
are certain administrative difficulties in this closer cor- 



ENGLISH 157 

relation, but they are not insuperable. A combined 
course here and there in English and history, and 
in English and science, would do much to relieve the 
English work from the isolation from which it now 
suffers in educational practice. Efforts to secure 
cooperation of other teachers with teachers of English 
will accomplish something even under present con- 
ditions. But not much of value will be achieved until 
the work itself in the various fields is actually and 
vitally correlated. 



CHAPTER XIV 
FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND MATHEMATICS 



Important 
place 

occupied by 
foreign 
languages 



Less em- 
phasis now 
being placed 
on the 
subject 



Foreign Languages 

Foreign languages had a predominantly large place 
in the curriculum of our early secondary schools and 
have maintained this position until recently. The 
ancient languages in the earlier period received exclu- 
sive attention, and only during the last half century 
have modern languages been given a place. College 
entrance requirements extending almost to the present 
year, and which have had a very large influence in 
determining the character of high school curriculums, 
were such that the linguistic element overshadowed all 
others. For example, for admission to the arts course, 
out of the total of fifteen units necessary for admission, 
six were required in foreign language and three in 
English, making a total of nine — or three-fifths of the 
whole number. More recently the requirements in 
foreign languages have not been generally met and the 
colleges have been forced to the device of condition- 
ing the student in these required units. 

The practice has been quite general in the college 
to require these units to be made up during the college 
course and to allow college credit therefor. Some of 
the colleges, having reduced the requirements in for- 



FOREIGN LANGUAGES 159 

eign language for entrance, have added to the require- 
ments in foreign language for graduation. We are 
not concerned here with the policy of the college. 
These facts are recited only to indicate the relatively 
large value that the higher institutions have given to 
the linguistic studies, and the emphasis that they still 
place upon this type of subject matter. This em- 
phasis is now growing less in practice, at least, if 
not in theory. And the high schools have exerted 
a considerable influence in bringing about this 
change. 

Reference has already been made to the predomi- "Discipiin- 
nant influence that the disciplinary conception of edu- JJj^' mflu " 
cation has exerted in the selection and organization particularly 
of the material of instruction. Nowhere outside the 
field of mathematics has this influence been so marked 
as in the field of foreign language. The chief aim in 
the teaching of language has been that of "mental 
discipline," and we have had the theory applied here 
in full force. This theory, as we know, holds that 
mental habits formed in response to a particular de- 
mand, are carried over into other fields of activity and 
that the possessor of these habits is able to use them 
without reference to the nature of the stimuli fur- 
nished by the environment in which he may be situ- 
ated. For example, the habit of attention, or of 
analysis, the power of discrimination, of memory, of 
judgment, or of reason, can be acquired once for all 
and is generalized and available at will. Since the 
study of language requires a high degree of attention, 
calls for analysis and discrimination, and demands 
the exercise of the " faculties" of memory, judgment 



i6o 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Other rea- 
sons than 
" disciplin- 
ary " must 
control 



Increasing 
importance 
of modern 
languages 



German pre- 
dominates 



and reason, the language advocates have insisted that 
their subjects possessed exceptional value. This con- 
tention accounts for the large place given in the 
curriculum to foreign language. 

To what extent the transfer of training is possible 
is an open question. But we have arrived at quite 
general agreement that no subject is entitled to a place 
in the curriculum merely or even largely upon "dis- 
ciplinary" grounds. If other reasons cannot be found 
that are sufficient in and of themselves to justify a 
subject, sooner or later it will have to give place to 
something else. 

The Modem Languages. — The modern languages are 
securing an increasingly larger place in the curriculums 
of our high schools. The work done in these lan- 
guages in the secondary schools was at first denied 
recognition by the higher institutions. Later the 
work was reluctantly recognized but not allowed to be 
substituted for requirements in the ancient languages. 
Now such substitutions are not only permitted, but 
some higher institutions which have no entrance re- 
quirements in the ancient languages, do have certain 
minimum requirements in the modern languages. This 
change of attitude on the part of higher institutions is 
significant in itself, and taken in connection with the 
increase of attention being given to modern languages 
in the secondary schools, indicates the important place 
now being assigned to them. 

In discussing the values of the modern languages 
it is well to keep in mind that the study is confined 
almost entirely to French and German. The latter 
of these has much the larger place. Just what the 



FOREIGN LANGUAGES 161 

exact ratio is throughout the country is not easy to 
determine, but in the Middle West, at least, German 
is in great preponderance. Perhaps the larger per- 
centage of Germans in our population accounts for 
this. But whatever the reasons are, the fact is that 
German is studied by a larger number of high school 
students than all other modern foreign languages. 

Foreign language must be regarded very largely Values 

largely 

from the standpoint of linguistic values. The high linguistic 
school student, in the very nature of the case, because 
of the relatively short time which he devotes to the 
study of foreign language, cannot get very far into 
its literature. The time necessarily required to acquire 
a vocabulary and master grammatical constructions, 
leaves but little time to be devoted to literature. This 
is pointed out here because however great the values 
of the content may be in the literature of a foreign 
language, it is necessary to keep in mind that the high 
school student never in any large way realizes these 
values. It therefore happens that some of the reasons 
given for the study of a foreign language are valid, 
except in a very limited way, only in the case of those 
who will continue their study for a considerable length 
of time in the college course. In discussing the study 
of foreign language in the high school, we should not 
base claims for it upon values not realized by the 
majority who study it. 

Taking into account the limitations upon the teach- Chief aim of 
ing and the study of a modern language, What are J^give ° n 
the aims that should guide us in the selection and readin s 

r «i i . i i • knowledge 

organization of material and m methods of teaching? 
The chief aim should be to give to the student a read- 



l62 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Practical 
considera- 
tions 
involved 



ing knowledge of it. It is not meant by this that the 
student be able merely to read the language with 
some degree of success as judged by class-room stand- 
ards. The material used in instruction and the 
methods employed in teaching should be of such char- 
acter that he will continue to read it whenever he is 
placed in a situation where it would be to his advan- 
tage to do so. One of the great universities of this 
country now requires all students who enter to be able 
to read at least one modern foreign language. If any 
enter who are deficient in this respect, they are re- 
quired during the first two years of their residence to 
make up this deficiency. The university seems to be 
justified in its requirements, since its work is so planned 
in many of the courses that the student finds it highly 
advantageous to be able to read at least one modern 
foreign language. 

The value, however, in being able to read a foreign 
language is not confined to the demands of higher 
institutions. To possess a reading knowledge of the 
modern foreign languages is highly desirable in cer- 
tain technical and scientific pursuits. The current 
literature in these fields is becoming more and more 
important, and to be able to read this literature is 
almost a necessity. This literature constitutes practi- 
cally the source of the social demands for the teaching 
of modern languages. These demands are impor- 
tant and are entitled to consideration. The extent 
to which the high school should be influenced by them, 
is to be determined in the light of the fact that, rela- 
tively, a very small proportion of its graduates will 
have such demands made upon them. 



FOREIGN LANGUAGES 163 

There is no doubt that the mastery of a foreign Ian- Relations 
guage is an aid to a student in the more complete mas- fonJgn ian- 
tery of his own language. There are two perfectly guage bears 
definite ways in which a foreign language in a greater language 
or less degree contributes to a knowledge of English. 
These are through structure and vocabulary. A 
foreign language may contribute either indirectly 
through contrast or directly through similarity. The 
modern foreign language which we are actually teach- 
ing in the most of our secondary schools, is marked by 
the great contrast which it bears to our own. French 
is quite similar in structure and vocabulary because 
both it and our own language are indebted in different 
degrees to the same ancient language. Whether this 
similarity should constitute a reason for giving French 
more consideration, is a question that we cannot dis- 
cuss here. It is worth while, however, to point out 
the essential difference between French and German 
as related to our own language. 

The Ancient Languages. — When we speak of the Greek has 
ancient languages, the classics, so far as the high school an impor- 
is concerned, we refer to Latin. Greek never had tant P lace 
a place of great importance and it is now a negligible 
quantity. The causes for this discrimination against 
Greek are not within the scope of our inquiry. From 
our point of view, however, except for the contribu- 
tion made by Latin on the purely linguistic side, 
there is no apparent reason for such discrimina- 
tion. Any claim that may be set up for the 
study of Latin, with this exception, can un- 
doubtedly be successfully maintained for the study 
of Greek. 



164 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



" Disciplin- 
ary " and 
" cultural " 
values of 
Latin 



Limitations 
upon the 
study of 
Latin in the 
high school 



One of the chief claims which has been made for the 
study of Latin is its disciplinary value. The valid- 
ity of this claim as a reason for teaching a foreign 
language has already been discussed and no further 
consideration will be given to it. Another claim for 
the study of Latin, hardly second in emphasis to that 
of " disciplinary " value, has been its cultural value. 
In fact this claim has frequently had precedence over 
all others. Latin has been willing to share honors 
with mathematics in the claim for disciplinary 
value, but as related to culture, mathematics has 
been lost in the reckoning and Latin has stood alone. 
No doubt much confusion has arisen in the discus- 
sions which have been going on considering the 
cultural value derived from the study of ancient 
languages, because of the confusion of terms. Those 
terms, which everybody is supposed to understand but 
which nobody takes the trouble to define, lead to just 
such confusions as we have had in this controversy. 
For example, throughout a good deal of this discus- 
sion an attempt has been made to set cultural studies 
over against informational studies, on the supposition 
that culture and information were mutually opposed. 

Further confusion has been introduced into the 
controversy by an implied assumption that cultural 
values are inherent in the linguistic element of a lan- 
guage rather than in the content of its literature. In 
actual practice, the average high school student does 
not sufficiently master the Latin language to permit 
him to enter in any large way into the content and the 
spirit of its literature. Added to this is the further fact 
that the kind of subject matter used, particularly in the 



FOREIGN LANGUAGES 165 

second and third years, has possessed very doubtful 
cultural value, even if mastered sufficiently to reveal 
its spirit and content. 

The contribution made by Latin to our language Contribution 
both as to structure and vocabulary is readily recog- Latin to our 
nized, and the value of the study of the subject in this lan s ua s e 
particular is readily seen. It is probably true that in 
the assistance which the study of Latin gives to the 
student in understanding and appreciating his own 
language, is found its chief value. A fuller recognition 
of this value both in the selection of material and in 
the method employed in teaching it, would lead to 
more fruitful results than an attempt to secure values 
which, even if present, are not attainable because of 
the limitations under which the high school student 
works. Since the chief value in Latin appears to be 
as indicated above, most of the subject matter now 
used should give place to other subject matter more 
in harmony with the chief aim of instruction. Ter- 
minology largely military or legal in character in- 
volves words not in general use, and from which the 
words used in daily conversation are in small measure 
derived. This material is no longer seriously defended 
from the standpoint of its content value, and the 
question needs to be pressed as to whether it can be 
defended from the standpoint of its linguistic value. 

A question still remains, however, concerning the A question 
use of foreign language, either ancient or modern, as L learning 
an aid in a more complete mastery of our own. And 
the question has to do with the economy of such edu- 
cational procedure. The requirements of economy 
must have consideration in matters of education as 



i66 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Limitations 
upon any 
foreign 
language 



Value of 
foreign lan- 
guage after 
leaving 
school 



well as elsewhere. The question is whether such use 
of a foreign language is a more economical means of 
securing a mastery of our own language than to spend 
the same amount of time directly upon the study of 
English. This question should have a greater degree 
of attention than it has had in the past. To spend 
two or more years upon one language only or even 
largely because of its value in securing a more rapid 
mastery of another one, may be an extremely wasteful 
mode of procedure. And even if it is determined that 
through the use of correct method in instruction it is 
economical so to use a foreign language, it is still in- 
cumbent upon us in the matter of practice to be sure 
that the correct method is being employed. An in- 
direct method of securing an end under any circum- 
stances is always more difficult to apply intelligently, 
simply because of the absence of direct means for 
testing results. 

In so far as it is possible, the standpoint suggested 
for the selection of material for instruction in English 
should be employed in case of the foreign languages. 
But because of the fact that students on entering the 
high school have first of all to get a command of the 
language, the limitations are readily apparent. These 
limitations, however, offer no reason for not choosing 
material which contains the largest content value 
that can be used in view of the limitations under which 
instruction is given. 

If the high school student ever secures much value 
out of the content of a modern language, it will be 
because he continues to read the language after leav- 
ing school. And if the demands which will be made 



MATHEMATICS 167 

upon him are such that he will not do this, it is a ques- 
tion whether this time in school could not be employed 
to better advantage than in an attempt to master a 
language that he will not read. 

In the case of Latin, there seems to be no probability The use of 
of the student ever getting very far into the content ansatl0ns 
value except through translations. Even if four years 
are spent in the study of Latin not much can be ac- 
complished, and since there is a tendency developing 
to discontinue the subject at the end of the second 
year still less can be hoped for in the future. To 
hope that students will read the language after they 
are out of school is futile. In the event that students 
go to college there will be no demand upon them to 
read Latin unless they continue its study, which in 
respect to boys is now rarely the case. There is no 
social demand calling for the use of the language in 
any way whatsoever, and it is evident that transla- 
tions are the only means through which any consider- 
able appreciation of the literature can ever be secured. 
There have been certain moral considerations attached 
to the misuse of translations, but no such objections 
as obtained in this improper use of them can attach 
to the uses suggested here. 

Mathematics 
Mathematics, like the ancient languages, is an edu- Mathe- 
cational inheritance. In its various forms it became a ^hwatimial 
part of the earlier curriculums because of its supposed inheritance 
disciplinary value and has maintained its position 
largely for this reason. But, unlike the classics, cer- 
tain phases of subject matter in varying degrees have 



1 68 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

been taught in response to practical social demands. 
The knowledge of arithmetic and of certain portions 
of geometry has been regarded as having practical 
value, and for this additional reason mathematics has 
occupied a relatively large place in the curriculum. 
In spite of this practical view of the subject, however, 
the choice of the subject matter and its organization 
have been determined largely by the disciplinary ideal. 
Succeeding generations of textbooks in arithmetic, for 
example, make it clear that the practical side of the 
subject has always been sacrificed to this ideal. No 
claims on the practical side have been made for 
algebra, and whatever claims may have been made for 
geometry, its supposed disciplinary value has been 
the controlling factor. 
"Discipiin- The claim made for the study of mathematics has 
ary " values k een k ase( j U p n the assumption that the study of it 
develops the power of reasoning. The form of mathe- 
matics and the difficulty incident to its mastery, are 
the reasons assigned for its value in this relation. The 
material readily yields itself to logical treatment and 
it permits forms of abstractions not possible in other 
fields. The symbols employed are particularly well 
adapted for use in making abstractions. So well 
recognized are these facts that we quite commonly 
use the terms mathematical forms of thought and 
mathematical types of reasoning. Whether the ability 
acquired in dealing with mathematical material can be 
carried over into fields in which the symbols cannot 
be used, and particularly whether it can be carried 
over into those fields in which we deal with concrete 
social situations, raises again the inquiry concerning 



MATHEMATICS 169 

the validity of the theory of transfer of training. 
Having discussed this theory in connection with 
foreign language, no further discussion will be given 
here. 

As regards the value of the content of mathematics Content 
in relation to preparing the student to meet the social 
demands which will be made upon him, some very 
important changes have taken place within recent 
years. On the one hand, much of the material in 
arithmetic that was supposed to be useful in business 
transactions, has been rendered of little practical 
value through the use of various devices for calcula- 
tion. On the other hand, the value of certain types 
of material in the whole field of mathematics, has 
increased through its use in scientific and technical 
occupations. These changes must of necessity be 
taken into account in the practical evaluation of the 
material selected for purposes of instruction. Merely 
traditional values should not have precedence over 
actual values arising out of new conditions in the world 
of affairs. 

Arithmetic is not studied at all in many of the high The place of 
schools, and those in which it has a place in the cur- anthmetic 
riculum, give comparatively little time to it. Except 
for the inability of grade pupils, on account of im- 
maturity, to make use of arithmetic in its practical 
applications, it Js probable that there would be little 
excuse for teaching it in the high school at all. But 
because of its usefulness in certain vocational activi- 
ties, it seems that there is still reason for selecting from 
this branch of the subject for purposes of high school 
instruction. 



170 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Unsatisfac- 
tory status 
of algebra 



Geometry 

deserves 

relatively 

larger 

place 



The branch of mathematics receiving the most 
attention at the present time is algebra. The justifi- 
cation for this practice seems to be very doubtful. 
Except as a preparation for the study of higher math- 
ematics, there is but little reason why algebra should 
receive so much attention. And no claim can be made 
for practical values, outside of its relation to the mastery 
of those subjects requiring the ability to employ alge- 
braic formulas. The subject also fails to merit the 
attention it receives on the ground that a very high 
percentage of failures occur. No other subject in the 
curriculum has recorded against it the percentage of 
failures recorded against algebra. Schools are either 
attempting too much, or are not attempting the right 
thing, or are employing methods intolerably bad. 
Whatever the causes of failure may be, the fact is that 
results are unsatisfactory. For those pupils who will 
pursue a technical course in a higher institution, a 
thorough preparation in the fundamentals of algebra 
is essential. But since these are comparatively so 
few, their interests should not be allowed to dictate 
to the disadvantage of the very large number whose 
needs will be of a very different kind. And if we 
accept the judgment of these higher institutions, the 
course in algebra even for this class of students needs 
radical revision. The whole situation in respect to 
algebra is intolerable. 

Geometry has up to the present time not received as 
much attention as it deserves. The opportunity for 
making its content concrete, its value in relation to 
certain other subjects in the curriculum, and the pos- 
sibilities of application of the knowledge derived to 



MATHEMATICS 171 

concrete problems, taken altogether should give it a 
relatively large place in mathematical instruction. 
The division of the time between algebra and geometry 
at present is an illogical one and readjustments are 
already being made. 

These readjustments in the high school are in some 
places resulting in quite radical changes. In the first 
place, two years instead of three or three and a half 
years are being given to the study of mathematics. 
And further, the work is being organized on an entirely 
different plan. Instead of dividing the subject in the 
traditional way, into arithmetic, algebra, and geometry, 
and devoting a specified length of time to each, selec- 
tions are made from each of these fields and the com- 
bined material is designated simply as secondary or 
high school mathematics. This plan assumes that 
the value of mathematics consists in its functional 
relations to other high school subjects and to the social 
demands which will be made upon those who study it. 
These two aims, which in effect are one, should govern 
in the selection of material from the whole field of 
mathematics. Other values than these, whatever they 
may be, will in no way be sacrificed if these practical 
values are given right of way. 

The shortening of the time devoted to the study of Mathe- 
mathematics in the high school seems to be inevitable. "J^vViess 
For the pupil to be required to spend nearly or quite attention 
a fourth of his time in the study of traditional mathe- 
matics is illogical. When the matter is looked at from 
the standpoint of relative values the practice is in- 
defensible. That less time will in the future be devoted 
to this traditional material is a foregone conclusion. 



1 72 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

It seems that the logical result of this will be some 
such selection and organization of the material for the 
shorter course as has been suggested above. Whether 
this will be the precise solution of the problem is not 
material. Some solution will be reached, however, 
which will give to the subject a higher educative value 
and which will make it function more largely in con- 
tributing its part in preparing the young people to 
meet the social demands which will be made upon 
them. 



CHAPTER XV 

HOUSEHOLD ART, MANUAL ARTS, COMMERCIAL 
SUBJECTS, AND AGRICULTURE 

Household Art 

In the chapter in which was discussed the function 
of the secondary school as it relates to the education of 
girls, much that might properly be included under the 
topic before us was either explicitly stated or impliedly 
involved and need not be repeated here except for pur- 
poses of further emphasis or of illustration. 

Domestic science, or domestic economy, is the name instruction 
given to a limited type of subject matter which belongs too narrow 
to a larger whole. In practice the teaching of this 
subject matter is usually limited to a few exercises in 
cooking and sewing. The limitations through lack 
of facilities have resulted in placing wrong interpreta- 
tions upon the meaning of the whole movement which 
its opponents have designated as " spending time in 
making soup and sewing on patches." Unfortu- 
nately in not a few schools this is about all the work 
has amounted to. But in spite of unfortunate begin- 
nings, through misconceptions of its meaning and 
limitation of its practical workings, the general move- 
ment toward securing a permanent and important 
place for home economics in the curriculum of the 
high school has been going forward at a rapid rate. 



174 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Favorable 
conditions 
necessary to 
success 



Aim of in- 
struction to 
develop 
proper 
attitude 
toward the 
home 



Whatever general term may be applied to designate 
the field of household arts, it should be recognized that 
the field is a broad one and includes several related 
subjects. It is not the purpose here to make compari- 
sons of the respective values of these related subjects, 
but rather to call attention to the fact that such eval- 
uations should be made in the selection of material 
in the light of circumstances and conditions obtaining 
in particular communities. The success of the work, 
it need not be said, will depend very largely upon 
whether it has the proper support of the community, 
on the one hand, and whether, on the other hand, 
competent teachers are available and suitable equip- 
ment provided. The attempt to teach household art 
in its different aspects in the absence of reasonably 
favorable conditions is to invite failure. At the present 
time there are too many schools attempting to do work 
of this character where present conditions do not 
warrant the undertaking. To attempt to teach any 
subject just because it happens to be the fashion or 
because the administration of the school desires to 
appear progressive, has no justification. Household 
art has suffered more than its rightful share from these 
ill-advised undertakings. 

The chief aim in teaching the subject should be to 
develop on the part of girls a more sympathetic and 
intelligent attitude toward the general problem of 
home-making and home-keeping. The kitchen no 
doubt presents problems of great importance, but 
these are not the only ones. Home furnishings and 
decorations and other things relating to the artistic 
appointments of the home are of no less importance. 



THE MANUAL ARTS 175 

Material dealing with this latter phase of the subject 
has far more immediate interest for the girls of high 
school age and instruction in these lines will find ready 
response and will give a setting for the whole range 
of instruction attempted. This type of material fur- 
nishes the point of contact and should receive its 
share of attention throughout the course. Household 
sanitation, sewing, cooking, work in textiles, and the 
economic aspect of the home and the relations which 
the home bears to the community, command attention 
and are entitled to consideration. But after all, in- 
struction in these lines is most valuable when it has 
the setting suggested. 

Household art suggests a point of view extremely Material to 
valuable, from which to regard certain fields of knowl- fromvarious 
edge as they relate to the education of girls and fields 
women. The material sciences, the social studies, 
particularly economics and art in its various aspects, 
have material in abundance. Thus far these fields 
have made but slight contribution to the education 
of women in harmony with their interests and social 
needs. If interests peculiar to girls and women are 
to receive larger consideration, subject matter must 
be selected suitable to their needs. The community 
demands made upon them must hereafter in greater 
degree determine the subject matter employed in 
their education. 

The Manual Arts 



The term manual training is sufficient to indicate the Emphasis on 
character of the work which has been done up to the side™* 1 " 1 
present time in the general field of manual arts. The 



176 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

literary content relating directly and indirectly to this 
employment in the school, designated as manual train- 
ing, has been practically negligible. In the absence 
of such content we have a parallel in the household 
arts. We are describing these courses as they are 
actually constituted in the average high school. This 
does not mean that these subjects have no such con- 
tent, but it is well to recognize that this particular 
negative characteristic of the work has served to set 
it over against the other subjects in the curriculum 
to its own disadvantage. It is no doubt fortunate in 
some respects that such content did not at first receive 
attention. The absence of it has served to bring to 
out attention more clearly the educative value of 
manual work. This needed to be done. On the 
other hand, persistence in assuming that all the posi- 
tive value in this sort of work is confined to the mere 
training of the hand has prevented certain valuable 
correlations which would give to the work its greatest 
significance. Before discussing this point it will be 
useful to devote brief consideration to the general 
movement which has given manual training an increas- 
ingly large place in our schools. 
Movement This movement did not originate in the public schools, 
private^ ^ut was ^ e resu ^ °f private enterprise, undertaking to 
schools meet the demands for vocational training in prepara- 

tion for the trades. These schools were called manual 
training schools and were not regarded as educational 
institutions in the commonly accepted sense. The 
courses were designed to meet a social demand by 
giving young men technical training. The early char- 
acter of the movement was responsible for giving to 



THE MANUAL ARTS 177 

the work its specific vocational aspect, even after it 
was taken over by the public schools. 

Some of these private schools after they were estab- Rapid de- 
lished were taken over and incorporated into a sys- accounted 
tern of public schools. This was due, of course, to part for 
the general tendency which has been gaining momen- 
tum in this country for three-quarters of a century, 
for the public to control all educational endeavor and 
to support the same by means of taxation. This 
movement for public education of this particular 
kind, beginning at the great centers of population, 
rapidly spread throughout the country. It became 
the fad and the fashion to introduce manual training 
into all the schools, and attempts to accomplish this 
in scores and hundreds of towns would only excite 
merriment if the futility of it all were not really a mat- 
ter for serious consideration. With no aim except 
of the most generalized sort, with no equipment worthy 
of the name, with teachers wholly incompetent for 
the task, instruction was attempted without hope of 
success. It was the fashion to offer manual training, 
and many schools did so at the cost of time and energy 
that might have been employed in some useful way. 

Manual training has been the subject of much ridi- opposition 

to the work 

cule which in some degree has been justified. It was 
attacked on the ground that it was not the business 
of the school to train for vocational activity. As a 
matter of fact, the schools in general were in no wise 
guilty of doing any such thing. But of the ones who 
brought the charge or those who hurried to the defense, 
or the people who sat as judge, no one seemed to realize 
that a waste of time was the real offense committed. 



i 7 8 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Later em- 
phasis upon 
educative 
values 



The larger 
values 



While the controversy was about nothing in the con- 
crete, the abstract proposition was worth discussing 
as to whether the public school should direct some of 
its energies to the satisfaction of the new demands 
made upon it. This controversy was valuable because 
it did call attention to the potential educative values 
in the manual arts. 

In the second stage of the movement the advocates 
of manual training put their emphasis upon the edu- 
cative value of the work. The purpose of education, 
they said, was to train both brain and hand and they 
were contending for the hand training. The manipu- 
lation and care of tools, the working in wood and 
metal, the sawing of boards, and making of joints and 
hammering of iron, gave the hand a training which 
would serve to establish the proper balance between 
the learning and the doing so essential in a well-rounded 
education. This activity, of course, was supposed to 
look forward to the making of things in which pupils 
could exercise their ingenuity, and which would give 
opportunity for a highly valuable mode of expression. 
The difficulty was that so much time was spent in 
"manipulating" and upon "exercises" that no time 
was left for the average student to come into his real 
inheritance, which was to be found in the really con- 
structive aspect of the work. This second stage in the 
movement was valuable, however, because it took our 
attention away from the mere vocational value of the 
subject and directed our attention to its educative 
value in its broader aspects. 

In these implied criticisms it has not been intended 
to underestimate the educative value in the develop- 



THE MANUAL ARTS 179 

ment of manual dexterity. Nor should it be under- 
stood that any implication is made that preparation 
for the trades should not result from instruction in 
manual training. On the contrary, it should be said 
that both aims are justified. But there is larger edu- 
cative value possible than mere development of manual 
dexterity and more in the work on the vocational side 
than simply a little training for some occupation. 
These values for both boys and girls should be recog- 
nized and the work reorganized in accordance with the 
possibilities afforded. 

The chief aim of instruction should be to give oppor- Two chief 
tunity for expression through the hand and to develop c™4 i h i ° uld 
interest in and appreciation for the larger social mean- instruction 
ing of vocational activities. On the industrial side, 
to put it another way, we are quite as much concerned 
in the manual arts with an interest in and appreciation 
for the people themselves who work at forge, in 
foundry, at the loom, and in the shop, as we are with 
the material with which they work. It is an educa- 
tion worth while, whether we shall engage in those 
activities or not, to be able to appreciate the value 
of the service of the people who in the making of a 
living produce with brain and hand these useful and 
beautiful things that have so much meaning in our 
civilization. 

Repeating what was said in connection with house- Correlation 
hold arts, the manual arts suggest a point of view from ^ork^the 
which to regard certain types of material. The content sch ° o1 
of the subject is the tools and the material, on the one 
hand, and on the other hand, the literature dealing 
with the life history of that material, with the various 



i8o 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



processes in its manufacture, and with the people who 
have in the past engaged and who in the present are 
engaged in giving to the material its social values. 
The work ought to be correlated with social science, 
English, and material science, to render it successful. 
In view of this, to say that this subject has no literary 
content indicates a misunderstanding both of the aim 
and of the ultimate values to be realized. 



Commercial Subjects 
Commercial Commercial subjects have had more or less attention 
gardedwith in our high schools for a good many years. The 
disfavor position, however, which they have occupied has 
always been a precarious one. They have been re- 
garded in general as possessing comparatively little 
educative value. Students who have pursued them 
have been regarded usually as being deficient in abil- 
ity or lacking in industry, or both. These conclusions 
may not be justified, but they represent in general 
the estimate placed upon commercial subjects. They 
were introduced into the schools because of their prac- 
tical value, and we should not expect very much con- 
sideration for them at a time when the practical was 
being set over against the cultural as though the two 
concepts were mutually opposed. Recently, however, 
the conception of education itself has been under- 
going radical reconstruction and in this process the 
advocates of commercial subjects profess to find hope 
that they will be accorded their proper place in our 
new scale of educational values, 
instruction In our rapidly developing economic society the de- 
schools 6 mands for commercial instruction grew so insistent that 



COMMERCIAL SUBJECTS 181 

private schools sprang up all over the country to meet 
the demands for practical training. It was but natural 
that we should finally undertake in the public schools 
this kind of training, in accordance with the popular 
belief that it is the duty of the state to support and 
control education of all kinds. These private com- 
mercial schools persisted, however, and have furnished 
in large measure the opportunities for commercial 
education. 

As a matter of fact, commercial instruction has instruction 
never had an important place in the work of the high high schools 
school, nor does it now have except in the congested 
centers of population. Outside of bookkeeping, a 
rather small minority of high schools have under- 
taken such instruction at all. Bookkeeping, however, 
has been quite generally taught and even now it is 
found in the curriculums of most of the high schools 
of the Middle West. This is not only true of the 
larger schools, but is equally true of the smaller 
schools situated in rural communities. 

Two reasons have been assigned for teaching book- Aims in 
keeping. One is that it is a practical subject and the ^ n e e t pmg 
other is, strangely enough, that it possesses disci- secured 
plinary value. The latter reason furnishes additional 
evidence, if any were needed, of the influence of tra- 
ditional ideals. It seems that bookkeeping was no 
exception to the rule that the practical claims for a 
subject could not secure for it a position of respecta- 
bility. In order to gain such position, the advocates 
of that subject had to establish somehow its right to 
a place in the curriculum on traditional grounds. It 
thus came about that one claim made for it was that it 



l82 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Lack of 
proper aims 
in general 



Two aims 

should 

govern 



possesses value in training the learner in habits of 
accuracy and neatness. As a result of this conflict 
between modern and traditional ideals, instruction 
in bookkeeping in the high school has been rather 
unfruitful. It would indeed be difficult to find any 
reason for the place which bookkeeping has in the 
curriculum, in the light of the usual conception of 
the subject and the way in which it is taught. 
For the most part, the instruction is not practical 
and the disciplinary value claimed for it is of very 
doubtful validity. 

It is not to be concluded from the discussion of 
bookkeeping, that commercial subjects do not have a 
rightful place in the high school. The unfruitfulness 
has not been due to the fact that the field represented 
by commercial subjects does not have in it material 
of great value for purposes of instruction. The result 
has been due to a lack of proper aims as guides in the 
selection of material and in methods of teaching. The 
attempt to justify commercial subjects on disciplinary 
grounds is absurd. To regard them as having no other 
value than to serve as preparation for a job, is to 
neglect larger values that may be realized under proper 
conditions of instruction. These larger values, how- 
ever, can be realized only by substituting other aims 
for those which have heretofore controlled in the work. 

Two aims should govern in commercial work. The 
first is that of giving to the young people a valuable 
point of view from which to interpret and understand 
the communities in which they live. This aim is 
closely related to one of the aims in instruction in Eng- 
lish. The other aim is that of providing training for 



COMMERCIAL SUBJECTS 183 

participation in business life. These two aims are not, 
of course, mutually exclusive. When the first one is 
realized, much has been accomplished in realizing the 
second. If these aims are permitted to control, com- 
mercial work will be given its rightful place in the 
curriculum. 

Subject matter already included in the discussion of Selection 
English need not be mentioned here. Commercial law J^on^T" 
is closely related to civics and economics. The more material 
technical subjects, such as stenography and type- 
writing, bookkeeping, banking and business practice, 
are demanded by both aims but are more nearly related 
to the second aim. This subject matter almost more 
than any other now in use has suffered from lack of 
organization. A subject has been thrown here and 
there into the curriculum to serve as a sop to the com- 
munity, or as a convenient elective. Only by giving 
to this type of subject matter 'the same consideration 
given to other subjects in respect to its selection and 
organization, can we expect satisfactory results in the 
work. 

The recent movement for the establishment of com- The work in 
mercial high schools in the large cities, indicates the hi^choois 
emphasis which is now being placed upon commercial 
instruction. These schools are the direct result of the 
commercial demands of the community for practical 
education. The subjects chosen and the subject 
matter used in instruction are principally determined 
by the practical demand. Nevertheless, a study of 
some of these curriculums leads one to the conclusion 
that educative as well as so-called practical values are 
aimed at in instruction. The courses in English are 



184 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Furnishes 
useful point 
of view for 
selection of 
material 



Educative 
values 



comprehensive and thorough, and emphasis is given to 
economics and industrial history. The place accorded 
these subjects tends to give to the work a breadth 
and depth that insure more than merely a training 
for commercial pursuits. Since, however, these courses 
of study are planned in direct answer to the peculiar 
demands of urban communities, it is likely that com- 
mercial instruction will be confined quite exclusively to 
the city schools. The tendency in the smaller schools 
seems to be away from the commercial subjects, and 
in the direction of vocational training in other lines. 

Agriculture 

The suggestion was made in a previous discussion 
that whether agriculture be regarded as a science, 
is not material. The word suggests a point of view 
from which it is fruitful to regard certain types of 
science material and from which to organize it for 
teaching purposes. It is with this value of the term 
that we should be chiefly concerned. If by scientific 
agriculture is meant systematic and purposeful in- 
struction, then the term is useful in assisting in the 
establishment of standards and in their use to realize 
the aim. Otherwise than this the term has no value 
for our purpose. 

With this interpretation in mind, there is every 
reason to regard this field of science as furnishing 
material possessing great educative value. Its con- 
creteness, its relation to our fundamental industry, 
and the opportunity for laboratory work of the most 
vital and fruitful sort, go far in commending it as 
highly useful in secondary instruction. The imme- 



AGRICULTURE 185 

diacy of the problems, the social import of the situa- 
tions arising, and the point of contact which such 
instruction furnishes, make this material more valuable 
than some other science material for which claims have 
been so insistently made. 

One of the chief reasons assigned for instruction in Social 

. . ,, . r . r ,, demands 

agriculture, is the importance of preparing many of the 
students in quite an immediate way to meet the social 
demands, in the form of vocational activities, which 
will be made upon them. Admitting the validity of 
this argument, it does not after all constitute the only 
reason and, indeed, not the chief reason, for such 
instruction in the secondary school. It is not to be 
doubted that the opportunity furnished by such 
instruction to those who will live their lives upon the 
farm, is of great value. The development of more 
sympathetic and intelligent attitudes toward this 
vocational activity and of making the occupation more 
highly productive and successful, should not be regarded 
lightly. But the attainment of these ends is not only 
important, from the point of view of what we regard 
as personal success, but because of the very funda- 
mental nature of the industry and its relation to social 
welfare in general. Our schools through neglect of 
attention have belittled agriculture about as long as 
society can afford. In fact, we have carried that 
policy beyond the point of indifference on the part of 
the people as a whole. We are reaping what we have 
sown and the harvest is not altogether to our liking. 

We are now awakening to our folly. It is evident Social 

significance 

that the indifference and even studied neglect of ofagncui- 
this great industry on the part of the schools is being ture 



i86 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Dangers to 
the success 
of the 
movement 



paid for in terms of waste of natural resources and of 
crowded populations living under intolerable condi- 
tions. The farmers themselves are, from a selfish point 
of view, less immediately concerned with the conserva- 
tion of the productivity of the soil than is the great 
mass of population not living on farms at all. If we 
look at the matter from the standpoint of general wel- 
fare, the constant drift of rural populations to the 
crowded centers, constitutes a problem in which urban 
far more than rural populations are concerned. When 
we become conscious of the situation in its entirety we 
shall see that the demand upon the schools to develop 
intelligent attitudes toward this vocational activity and 
to increase the general intelligence concerning means of 
conserving these natural resources on account of their 
large social import, is not coming from the farmers. 
The philanthropic attitude which some of those in 
authority are assuming toward the farmers in America 
would be quite ridiculous if it did not display a degree 
of ignorance that is positively harmful. Increased 
intelligence on the part of everybody concerning this 
great industry is coming to be one of the outstanding 
necessities of our generation. The assumption of 
those who would belittle the attempt to meet this 
great social need, that instruction in agriculture is 
quite beneath the dignity of educational institutions, 
shows an utter lack of understanding of the meaning 
of education in our country and time. 

That agriculture will be given a permanent and im- 
portant place in the curriculums of our schools there 
can be little doubt. Those who so vigorously oppose 
the movement in this direction may temporarily retard 



AGRICULTURE 187 

it, but their influence is rapidly waning. There is far 
more danger to the success of the movement, at the 
present time, from its active supporters and those who 
are accepting the logic of the situation as a matter of 
course. Those, on the one hand, who see in it only 
the means of vocational training and those, on the 
other hand, who regard it merely as a fashion of the 
times and hasten to adopt it, fail to recognize its edu- 
cational significance. These conditions are pointed 
out here for the reason that the selection and organi- 
zation of material from a merely vocational point of 
view or from no point of view at all, will greatly retard 
the movement and for a long time defeat the real 
aim of instruction. To keep definitely before our 
attention the potentially large import of instruction 
in agriculture, is the best means of assuring that the 
process of selection and organization of material will 
realize the aim which we have set out to accomplish. 

It can hardly be said that the instruction in agricul- Conditions 
ture now being given in the high schools is meeting cental stage 
with much success. We cannot defend the present prevail 
situation on any other grounds than that confusion 
in aim, disorganized and unrelated material used in 
instruction, and lack of method in teaching, are in- 
evitable in the early stages of educational experiments. 
Recognizing that social demands for agricultural edu- 
cation are legitimate, we shall go forward in working 
out aims that will more definitely function in the 
selection of material and the organization of it so as to 
render it most useful for purposes of instruction. 

Both the art and the science of the subject should Emphasis 
have attention, but the former should receive the practical 



1 88 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

emphasis. The course should deal with a study of 
soils, their properties and care. Varieties of grains, 
the care and planting of seed grain, cultivating and 
harvesting crops, are important phases of the subject. 
Insects and other pests and means of their extermina- 
tion should receive attention. Breeding and care of 
animals, standards of judging stock and the like are 
matters of interest. These illustrations serve to indi- 
cate the general character of the work. Emphasis 
upon such topics will appeal to the interests of stu- 
dents and thereby contribute to the educative value of 
the subject. On the vocational side this kind of work 
is demanded in order to develop right attitudes toward 
the farm. This type of instruction will serve also 
as preparation for meeting the practical demands of 
farm life. 



CHAPTER XVI 
MUSIC AND ART; MORAL AND ETHICAL INSTRUCTION 

Music and Art 
The various fields discussed offer abundant material Sources of 
which, if properly used, will contribute toward the develop t0 

development of aesthetic appreciation. History and aesthetic 
.. , , . , .iiii appreciation 

literature are abundant m such material and the house- 
hold and manual arts have important contributions to 
make. The failure to use this material is not only 
unfortunate in itself, but it also results in a lack of 
proper setting for instruction in those subjects whose 
chief value lies in the contribution which they make 
to the aesthetic side of life. In fact, aesthetic appre- 
ciation is not developed so much through direct instruc- 
tion as through an environment, material and social, 
in which aesthetic features are prominent. Such an 
environment, however, is made to function more fully 
through some direct attention to those subjects which 
deal more exclusively with aesthetic appreciation. 

Music has not received the attention in the high Two reasons 
school that rightfully belongs to it. Two reasons may f< ? r faUur f t0 

. . . give music 

be assigned for this neglect. One reason is that its its proper 
value is not appreciated, and the other is that no well- p ac< 
defined aim in musical instruction has governed 
the work. A fuller realization of the value of music, 
both in its aesthetic and social aspects, would have a 



190 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Two aims 
in instruc- 
tion 



Instrumenal 
music in 
the home 



tendency to give it the larger place which it deserves. 
A proper emphasis upon its social value would do 
much to determine an aim in musical instruction in 
accordance with the needs and capacities of youth. 
The relation of music to the employment of leisure 
time is an important one and the aim of instruction is 
largely determined by this relationship. 

The aim of instruction should be to cultivate an 
appreciation of music and to prepare the learner as 
far as possible for participation in musical activities. 
The realization of this aim is not only desirable but 
in a considerable degree possible. Interest in musical 
activities is easily aroused through proper social organ- 
ization in the school, and aside from the fact that 
boys are unable to sing during the earlier part of the 
adolescent period, they participate in musical activities 
with as much interest and freedom as do the girls. 
Proper social stimulus is needed, however, in order to 
secure such participation. Definitely organized groups 
through which musical activities can be carried on, 
provide the proper stimuli and furnish opportunity 
for the functioning of group motives. 

Every high school can and should encourage students 
to pursue the study of instrumental music through 
giving credit toward graduation for work done under 
private instruction. Some schools are now doing this, 
and, under proper control exercised by the school, there 
seems to be no reason why the plan should not become 
universal. The educative value of instruction in music 
is sufficient to warrant recognition by the school, and 
the administrative problem presented by the plan 
now in vogue in some schools does not render the plan 



MUSIC AND ART 191 

difficult to operate. Many girls in the high school 
desire, and their parents desire for them, something in 
the way of a musical education. This is impossible 
unless the school will cooperate in the direction sug- 
gested above. 

Few high schools perhaps should attempt instruc- Vocal music 
tion in instrumental music except in connection with ^J e h . 
an orchestra. The latter kind of instruction is pos- 
sible in most schools and it should receive attention. 
The teaching of vocal music is possible in all high 
schools. The instruction should not be technical nor 
aim at the development of trained musical performers. 
Not a little musical instruction is fruitless because of 
the deadening influence of its technicalities and hum- 
drum exercises employed in an attempt to work out 
a technique impossible to be acquired by most young 
people, and if acquired would in the majority of cases 
never be put to any use. The aim should be to teach 
the young people to sing, and this task is not a diffi- 
cult one if the social motives above referred to are 
appealed to in the right way. Glee clubs and choruses 
are the key to the situation so far as vocal music is 
concerned. These organizations are extremely useful 
to the social life of the school and through their activi- 
ties the young people receive a training that is highly 
valuable. 

Instruction in art, as far as the majority of high Means of 
schools are concerned, is almost a negligible quantity, in art 
In respect to the education of girls, no type of 
instruction is perhaps more valuable. It appeals to 
their interests, furnishes opportunity for highly valu- 
able modes of expression, and prepares them for service 
in the home and in the community. The aim of 



192 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Household 
art center 
for organi- 
zation of 
material 



instruction should be to cultivate an appreciation of 
the beautiful and also to train in artistic expression. 
On the appreciation side, one of the most fruitful 
means is to provide an artistic environment in the 
school and its surroundings. An artistic material 
environment properly utilized can be relied upon in 
large measure to secure artistic appreciation. The 
school that fails to provide and utilize such environ- 
ment fails to perform one of its most important duties. 
The high school may easily be rendered a center in 
every community from which an influence will go out 
that will do much for the community in promoting 
artistic appreciation and in securing better conditions 
on the artistic side. 

As was pointed out above, the household arts and 
other subject matter of the curriculum furnish oppor- 
tunity for the development of artistic appreciation. 
Household art constitutes a center around which all 
material used for such purposes should be organized. 
Design, color schemes, interior decoration, indicate 
some of the possibilities in high school instruction. 
As in music, the instruction should not be technical, 
nor should the aim be to develop a specialized tech- 
nique. The plan of instruction should not be such 
as to appeal alone to the exceptional few, but of such 
character as to enlist the interest of every girl within 
the range of the influence of the school. The aim is 
not to cultivate talent, but to arouse interest and to 
provide means through which this interest may find 
fruitful expression. 



MORAL AND ETHICAL INSTRUCTION 193 

Moral and Ethical Instruction 
It was assumed at the outset that nothing need Aim of 

education 

be said directly concerning moral and ethical mstruc- ethical and 
tion in discussing the work of the school. It was taken mond 
for granted that no one who is competent to think 
about education at all would fail to understand that 
education itself has no meaning in the absence of eth- 
ical and moral considerations. All recognize now that 
morality and ethics are not abstractions. On the con- 
trary, they are of themselves the very essence of life. 
One should not have to say that the aim of education 
is anything other than moral and ethical. 

Just because everyone takes these things for granted, 
however, does not make it less necessary to select 
means intelligently and to use these means wisely. 
Content and its organization must be determined by 
the same criteria as those which we employ whenever 
we engage in any kind of educational endeavor. We 
are perhaps guilty of a good deal of loose thinking 
concerning moral and ethical education. The tend- 
ency is to regard such instruction as merely incidental. 
We have no right to hope for mere by-products to have 
high value in the field of morals and ethics any more 
than we have anywhere else. The aim should be 
clearly defined and the material selected with the 
same care that is exercised elsewhere. 

Perhaps no needs of the adolescent are more obvious Demand for 
than those which have to do with his adjustments to 
moral and ethical demands. The adolescent period 
is a moral crisis. No plea of lack of available means 
can justify us in a neglect to meet the demand for 



194 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Not the 
name but 
the fact 
important 



Sources of 
material 



instruction. If no means are available, then all that 
we are doing in the name of education is worse than 
futile. Much is being done by wise teachers to refute 
the statement sometimes heard, that our schools are 
not giving moral instruction. Nevertheless there is 
an insistent demand that much more be done than we 
are now doing. 

In the absence of religious instruction in our public 
schools the problem is no doubt a difficult one, and 
one which has not as yet been very satisfactorily solved. 
The introduction of such material as is used in some 
of the European schools is out of the question. In 
the presence of this difficulty, we have been inclined 
to attach a great deal of importance to the mere names 
of things and lament our lack of proper means of instruc- 
tion. Whether we shall be able to gather together 
the material for use and organize it into a body of 
knowledge which we shall designate as ethics or some 
such term, is not particularly important. The im- 
portant thing is the meaning of a moral and ethical 
life and to understand how such a life is conditioned. 
We should know by this time that no one ever be- 
comes either moral or ethical by simply studying about 
morality and ethics. One is no more able to build 
character out of that kind of material than he is to 
develop a strong body as result of a knowledge of 
bones and muscles. Valuable material is in fact 
available and use should be made of it. 

The first means at our command is a more definite 
use of the material in the curriculum. History, science, 
art, literature, are rich in material for moral and ethical 
instruction. An intelligent attitude toward one's own 



MORAL AND ETHICAL INSTRUCTION 195 

physical welfare is the basis of morality. This can be 
secured through the proper use of science material, 
as has already been pointed out. There is no need 
to dwell upon the possibilities in the other material 
suggested above. But there must be a definite aim 
controlling and an equally definite plan in the details 
of the work in order to realize the aim. The teacher 
who fails at either point thereby confesses not only the 
failure of his teaching, but also the failure to make use 
of his own education in his everyday living. 

As valuable as the subject matter is for moral and Social 
ethical instruction, it is no more valuable than is the oHhTschooi 
social organization of the school, provided it is of the anageacy 
right kind. It is not the purpose here to enter into 
any details concerning the character of the social organ- 
ization. The topic will be treated in a later chapter. 
But in passing, emphasis should be placed upon the 
fact that the social organization of the school is perhaps 
the greatest single agency at our command for charac- 
ter building. That this is often not so is no doubt 
true. That it should be and may be the most potent 
factor within the command of the school is beyond 
controversy. 



CHAPTER XVII 
PHYSICAL TRAINING AND ATHLETICS 



Unfortunate 
beginnings; 
lack of 
control 



It was pointed out in Chapter III that the use of the 
word training as related to the topic under discussion is 
not altogether fortunate. The word education is a 
better term. Training places emphasis upon prac- 
tice in certain physical exercises and results in undue 
attention being given to one of the means employed 
in physical education. Whereas education implies an 
educational aim and the selection of all the means neces- 
sary to carry out the aim. 

Physical education has had a strange history. For 
generations people were content with a theory regard- 
ing its importance, but very little was even attempted 
in the way of actual endeavor and achievement. How 
much longer this state of affairs would have prevailed 
had not the young people themselves taken the matter 
in hand would be difficult to determine. The young 
people, however, did take the matter in hand and 
upon their own initiative, and frequently in opposition 
to school authorities, athletic activities were introduced 
into the schools. The colleges led and the high schools 
were quick to imitate. Inter-school contests furnished 
the sole stimulus, and these were arranged and carried 
out through student initiative and enterprise. Out 
of this situation certain evils developed and in an 



PHYSICAL TRAINING AND ATHLETICS 197 

attempt to regulate these evils some kind of super- 
vision and regulation was attempted on the part of the 
school authorities. This was an unfortunate beginning 
and we still suffer from its effects. 

One of the evils resulting from the lack of control Results on 
was deterioration in scholarship. Interest in athletic 
activities ran high and participation in them became 
for many of the boys the chief end of existence. In 
order to meet the emergency, the schools began to de- 
vise means whereby proper control could be exercised. 
The result of this endeavor was the setting up of stand- 
ards of work which must be met before participa- 
tion in inter-school games was permitted. Thus it 
came to be established that no one could take part in 
inter-school games who did not meet certain scholastic 
requirements. In order to promote this endeavor, 
associations of schools were formed and the eligibility 
of players was through this means doubly assured. 
If the school to which the players belonged did not 
insist upon the requirements being met, the contesting 
school would see to it that conditions of eligibility were 
respected. That these efforts to put inter-school con- 
tests upon a reasonable basis have accomplished much 
is generally conceded. But that much remains to be 
done in the cause of physical education is the subject 
requiring our present attention. 

There is perhaps no other phase of educational The evils 
endeavor in which we have been so long in theory and the real 
so short in practice as in physical education. The begin- P roblem 
ning was made at the wrong end, and we have literally received 
backed into the situation in which we now find our- 
selves. Those who were responsible for forcing the 



198 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

problem upon the schools had no conception of its 
meaning, and the attendant evils were so apparent 
that about all that has been done by school authori- 
ties up to the present is to attempt to minimize the 
evils. The problem of the evils rather than the real 
problem, that of physical education, has received prac- 
tically all the attention devoted to the subject. 

steps in the The imperative necessity at present is for all the 
schools to do what only a few schools are doing toward 
solving the problem. The beginning of the solution is 
a clear and reasonable statement of the aim of physical 
education. The second step in the process is an intelli- 
gent and workable method of providing for the needs 
and capacities of the pupils. 

Three-fold The aim in reality is three-fold — corrective, pre- 

aim 

ventive, and constructive. This calls for a compre- 
hensive consideration of the subject and requires that 
means be employed which for the most part have not 
yet been taken into account at all. The present 
makeshift policies only tend to confuse the issue and 
in many cases are resulting in positive harm. The 
correction of faults, the prevention of the development 
of undesirable tendencies, and an increasing control 
over the process of development on the part of the 
learner, constitute the goal of instruction. 
Needs and Nothing worth while can be accomplished toward the 
learners S ' realization of this aim, in the absence of proper means 
must be anc [ methods of ascertaining the needs and capacities 

ascertained m ° . 

of each individual receiving instruction. Requirements 
which are more and more being insisted upon by the 
schools may or may not be desirable, depending upon 
whether they are intelligently determined. The as- 



PHYSICAL TRAINING AND ATHLETICS 199 

sumption, quite generally in vogue, that the only essen- 
tial requirement for an instructor is the ability to coach 
a team is an absurdity. Or if we add to this function 
the knowledge of the use of gymnastic apparatus, the 
essential factor is still neglected. The instructor, or 
some one for him, must first of all determine what 
each individual needs and what his capacities are, 
before the three-fold aim set up can serve as a guide 
in instruction. 

The literary content for physical instruction has Sources of 
been practically nothing in the great majority of schools instruction 
up to the present time. More attention needs to be 
given to this before physical education will be placed 
upon an intelligent basis. The material sciences, 
particularly the biological sciences, possess abundant 
material for this purpose if properly selected and 
organized. This was suggested in our discussion of the 
sciences and nothing need be added here except by way 
of emphasizing the necessity of making use of this ma- 
terial in the most practical and fruitful way. Whether 
we shall continue to use the material in science in- 
struction as such or whether we shall select out of the 
field such material as is useful, organize it, and give it 
another name, is not important. The essential thing 
is to make use of such material in promoting the cause 
of physical education. 

The three-fold aim, however, will continue to rely importance 
to a considerable extent upon intelligently chosen and excises 
wisely directed exercises for its realization. Mere 
knowledge of one's own physical needs and capacities 
and a knowledge of methods of supplying the needs 
and developing the capacities will, of course, avail 



200 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



but little. The building up of a strong body and the 
development of control must depend upon exercises 
intelligently selected and carefully directed. The 
breaking off of old physical habits and the forming of 
new ones constitute a large part of the task. The 
only way to get rid of a bad habit of any kind is to 
set about vigorously to build up a good one. Oppor- 
tunity must be furnished by the school for the 
upbuilding of such physical habits as will result in 
proper development and control and will function in 
right living after the stimulus of the school environ- 
ment has been replaced by conditions of daily living. 
The place Athletic activities which now for the most part 

and function constitute the whole of the endeavor being made, are 

of athletics 

indispensable in any system of successful physical edu- 
cation. That such activities should constitute rela- 
tively much less of the total endeavor than they now 
do, is no doubt true. But the hope entertained by 
some that athletic contests can be entirely elimi- 
nated is wholly futile. The stimulus furnished by 
contests, the value of these in themselves from the 
social point of view, and the unifying influence when 
properly controlled which they exert upon the school 
as a whole, renders elimination undesirable if it were 
possible. The need is to correlate properly these 
activities with the whole of the situation and cause 
them to contribute more largely to the solution of the 
problem of physical education. 

Instruction and exercises should be properly corre- 
lated and go hand in hand. The instruction of the 
class-room should be utilized as far as possible in the 
gymnasium and on the athletic field. The work of 



Correlation 
of instruc- 
tion and 
exercises 



PHYSICAL TRAINING AND ATHLETICS 201 

the gymnasium and the athletic field should in turn 
make clear to the student the importance and sig- 
nificance of the work of the class-room. The student 
should be taught what to do and then should be guided 
in the practice of doing those things that will result 
in correcting physical defects and in promoting health 
and physical vigor. 



CHAPTER XVIII 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 



Length of 
the high 
school 



Present 
division 
between 
grades and 
high school 
unsatisfac- 
tory 



In a discussion of the organization of the curriculum 
the first thing to take into account is the length of 
the course. A four-year course is now quite generally 
accepted in practice. Few high schools have extended 
the course beyond four years and there is no general 
movement to do so. A large number of the smaller 
high schools offer a course of less than four years. 
Some of the larger schools are also offering two and 
three year courses along with the regular courses. In 
the former, the shorter courses are offered because of 
the limitations of communities as regards population 
or funds or both. The latter offer the two and three 
year courses for those students who can not or will not 
remain in school for the longer period. In neither 
case is the shorter course regarded with favor. Four 
years are considered as the standard for a high school 
course in this country. 

No reason can be assigned for our present practice of 
offering four years of high school work. Eight years 
for the work of the grades and four years for that of 
the high school is an illogical arrangement. The plan 
of six years for each is quite generally accepted as 
being wholly warranted and more desirable from every 
point of view than the present practice. Seven years 
for the grades and three or four years for the high school, 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 203 

have also been suggested as a desirable modification of 
the present system. Change has been under discus- 
sion for a considerable time, but we are holding to 
the old division in spite of a quite general agreement 
that the practice is indefensible; and the imme- 
diate future gives little promise of reform. Reorgani- 
zation of courses of study now taking place, although 
extremely radical in some particulars, has not, except 
in isolated cases, disturbed the time-honored practice 
in respect to the length of the course. In view of this, 
our discussion of the organization of the curriculum 
will assume that four years will constitute the maxi- 
mum time allowed for the work. 

No attempt will be made to formulate an ideal No such 
curriculum for the simple reason that there is no such ?jj^ as 
thing. The factors that must be taken into account curriculum 
in the making of a curriculum are so variable that any 
attempt to formulate one to be used indiscriminately 
would be futile. Community interests vary to such 
an extent that no course of study, however valuable it 
might be in one community, could be used without 
some modification in another community. In some 
instances little modification would be necessary. In 
other cases, the course of study in one school would 
need to differ radically from that of another school. 
Administrative reasons also enter into the formula- 
tion of a curriculum. Small communities cannot do 
what large communities are able to undertake success- 
fully. For these reasons, the limits of the present 
chapter will permit of nothing more than a discussion 
of those fundamental principles that should serve as 
guides in the organization of a curriculum. 



204 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Problem of 
selecting 
subjects and 
subject 
matter 



Many 
schools 
attempt too 
much 



Limitation 
as to time 



The making of a course of study requires, in many 
schools, the selection of but a limited number of fields 
from which to choose material. The problem of select- 
ing from among the various fields of knowledge is 
quite as important as is the selection of material within 
the fields. To offer opportunity to any considerable 
extent for study in all of these various lines would mean 
an extensive program which the average high school 
is not able to maintain. 

The criticism called for at this point is that the 
majority of schools are attempting far too much in 
view of the limited facilities at their command. Re- 
form is needed in this particular, and until it is accom- 
plished no constructive work is possible. The first step 
in the right direction is a realization that the school 
can not offer everything, and in consequence must 
choose that which possesses the largest value in view 
of the particular limitations under which it has to 
carry on its work. In the case of many schools, this 
would result in the entire elimination of certain fields 
which under favorable conditions might be given an 
important place in the curriculum. 

The first limitation to be taken into account is that 
of time. While it is assumed in practically all of our 
educational literature that all high schools offer a 
four-year course of instruction, the fact is that in 
most of the states of the Middle West the two and 
three year high schools are very numerous. In Kan- 
sas, for example, in a total of approximately five hun- 
dred high schools nearly half the number offer less than 
four years of work; about fifteen per cent offer but one 
year of work; twenty per cent, two years; ten pel 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 205 

cent, three years; and the remainder offer a four-year 
course. These smaller schools may not be entitled 
to be called high schools, but they are attempting to 
give secondary instruction and must be taken into 
account. They are attempting too much and must 
soon choose between being less ambitious, and pro- 
viding proper facilities for doing well what they at- 
tempt to do. The time limit, if there were no other 
reason, is sufficient to require that they attempt less 
and thereby take the first step necessary to secure a 
higher degree of efficiency. 

Further limitations are placed not only upon these inadequate 
schools but also upon many four-year high schools, equipmen 
because of inadequacy of equipment. With their 
facilities for work, a considerable number of the pres- 
ent four-year schools should not undertake more than 
three years of work. Science instruction and manual 
training are attempted without adequate equipment, 
resulting in a waste of time and effort. The communi- 
ties in which these schools are situated, are too fre- 
quently laboring under the delusion that the length of 
the course of study rather than the quality of the work 
done is of primary importance. They are no doubt 
honestly seeking to give their boys and girls opportuni- 
ties equal to those offered by the high schools of the 
larger towns and cities. But in fact, they are depriv- 
ing them of real educational opportunities through 
failure to provide the facilities demanded by their 
ambitious undertakings. 

The teaching force is another factor to be taken Limitations 
into account. The number of teachers should be ^achers 
adequate to the demands of the course of study. It 



206 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

is unfortunate when one teacher is compelled to teach 
four or five different subjects, but the condition be- 
comes intolerable when in addition to this the teacher 
is expected to hear classes every hour of the day. No 
teacher under such circumstances can do satisfactory 
work, and no community that permits any such thing 
has a right to expect very much from its schools. Two 
teachers and a four-year course — and even three 
teachers in the case of elective subjects — constitutes 
an unwarranted combination. If a community can- 
not or will not provide more teachers, then the only 
alternative is to attempt less work. 
Problem These limitations operate to restrict the amount 

Shoois °f work attempted. They also enter into the matter 
different f determining the character of the curriculum. If 
large schools less than four years of work can be offered, or if four 
years of work is offered with few electives, the problem 
of curriculum making is very different from the case 
where a large number of electives is offered and pupils, 
acting upon the advice of parents and teachers, choose 
those lines of work which seem best suited to their 
needs. If the curriculums of these schools are properly 
organized, we have in the case of the larger schools 
a number of courses of study instead of a single one. 
To select any one of these courses as the only course 
that a school can offer to all the pupils might naturally 
be a serious error. The tendency on the part of the 
smaller communities merely to duplicate in so far as 
they can the curriculums of schools in larger communi- 
ties, has been entirely too prevalent. More independ- 
ence is needed on the part of the smaller communities 
in determining the opportunities offered to their boys 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 207 

and girls for a high school education. The difficulty 
of selection is generally in direct ratio to the degree 
of limitation under which the school carries on its 
work. 

It is freely granted, that it is difficult to determine interests of 
averages in the matter of deciding what kind of a ^afmust 
course of study should be maintained by a high school govern 
providing few or no electives. Nevertheless, this is 
precisely what has to be done. The interests of the 
majority of the pupils of the school must be the de- 
termining factor. This question is determined every- 
where by the relatively constant factor to which 
reference has been made, and further by the probable 
social demands that will be made upon those who 
constitute the majority. What lines of work, taking 
into account all the circumstances, will probably fur- 
nish the best educational opportunities, is the question 
to be answered. In arriving at an answer, it is neces- 
sary to consider some of the influences that will prob- 
ably have to be ignored to a considerable degree. 

The first of these influences to be considered is that College 
of college entrance requirements. No defense need quirements" 
be entered to the charge that we are under-estimating not d eter - 

. mining 

the value of the influence which the college has upon influence 
the high school. Neither is it required, that a dis- 
cussion be entered into concerning the value of the 
stimulus which the high school should give the pupil 
to inspire him with the desire to go to college. In a 
previous chapter this matter has been discussed at 
sufficient length. The fact is that the course of study 
offered by the small high school has been too largely 
infTuer>ced by college entrance requirements. The 



208 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

majority of the boys and girls of this class of schools 
will not go to college. Unless it can be demonstrated 
that a college preparatory course does best serve the 
needs of this majority, then the minority should not 
determine what opportunities the majority are per- 
mitted to enjoy. A very strong presumption against 
the value of the college preparatory course is furnished 
by the fact, that it is planned wholly with a view to 
preparing the students for pursuing academic work 
throughout a college course. 
Nor narrow Another influence is that arising out of the narrow 
hiterest?* 7 vocational interests of the community. If we had a 
single demand instead of several, it would still be 
true that the function of the school is not chiefly to 
train for any particular vocational activity. When 
there are several such influences, it is evident that 
most of them would have to be ignored even if such 
training were attempted. The demands of the com- 
munity are no more valid than the demands of the 
college, unless they permit the schools to provide 
those opportunities that furnish to the pupils a kind 
of environment possessing real educative value. It 
is no more good educational policy to compel the 
pupils to take bookkeeping or stenography or some 
other subject preparing for vocational activity, just 
because one or two pupils demand it, than it is to com- 
pel all to take four years of Latin and three years of 
mathematics because one or two wish to prepare for 
college. The only grounds upon which either of these 
alternatives should be chosen is that these subjects 
possess a higher educative value than other subject 
matter possesses. 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 209 

On the positive side of the question, fortunately, we proper 
find certain definite guides in the solution of the prob- ^* s °. f 
lem. The larger interests of the community are served 
best by furnishing to the pupils that kind of instruc- 
tion which the peculiarities of the adolescent period 
demand. There is perhaps no order of importance 
in these demands. Yet if choice must be made, it 
seems that physical efficiency, the development and 
rendering intelligent of vocational interests, and prepa- 
ration for leisure occupation should have first con- 
sideration. If these interests are all taken care of, we 
shall have gone a long way in meeting the demands 
made upon the high school. These aims of education 
furnish us valuable criteria for making the selection of 
means, however great the limitations may be upon the 
school. Every school should offer something in the 
social studies, in science, and in English. If it can 
offer no more than these three lines and do it well, 
these should constitute the curriculum. 

If some of the present curriculums of our smaller Work of 
schools were measured by these standards, it is quite ™^ ls not 
evident that they would be found wanting. Too standard- 
many schools allow their courses of study to be de- 
termined by other reasons than those arising out of 
educational values. The education offered by the 
small school should be just as valuable as far as it 
goes as that offered by the larger school. It must 
choose its means with a view to accomplishing that 
which is most essential. 

When the question has been answered concerning 
the fields that should be selected as over against cer- 
tain other fields that must be neglected, the further 



2IO 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Courses of 
smaller 
schools not 
merely 
sections of 
courses of 
larger 
schools 



Problem 
in larger 
schools 
one of 
organization 



General plan 
of curric- 
ulum 



question arises as to what shall be done within these 
fields. If the field of social science be selected and if 
in the light of the circumstances it appears to be best 
to offer but two years' work in this line, it would not 
be wise to select the material offered during the first 
two years by a school that is able to provide four 
years of instruction. Or if it is decided to offer but 
one year of mathematics, it is quite likely that the 
courses should differ materially from any one year 
offered by the larger schools. The more extended 
courses in these lines mentioned, or in others, pre- 
suppose the necessity for laying foundations for further 
study. But where the time is limited, if it is chiefly 
devoted to laying an extensive foundation that is all 
that will be accomplished. If but two years are 
offered in mathematics, there appears to be no justifi- 
cation for devoting three-fourths of this time to alge- 
bra. If but one year is offered in science, a course in 
"general science" is preferable to a year of a single 
science or a half-year each of two sciences. What has 
been said concerning social science, material science, 
and mathematics should be said regarding any other 
subject. 

The problem of curriculum making is very different 
for the larger schools. They are not restricted as are 
the smaller schools and are relatively free to offer a 
wide range of electives. This largely eliminates the 
problem of selection and rejection of lines of work, 
and creates a complex problem of organization. 

The first question has to do with the general plan 
of the curriculum. One plan is that of parallel courses. 
Courses are designated so as to represent the emphasis 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 211 

employed in selecting the subjects. Various designa- 
tions have been used such as College Preparatory, 
Classical, Scientific, English, Latin, Commercial, Mod- 
ern Language, Manual Training, and so on. Examina- 
tion of numerous courses of study from the time this 
plan of organization was first used up to the present, 
reveals that these terms sometimes mean but very 
little. They often indicate nothing more than an 
opportunity to substitute one line of work for another 
in a very limited way. The Modern Language course, 
for example, may not differ from the English course ex- 
cept that two years of German are required whereas in 
the English course this work may be elective. The 
course called Elective may not differ materially from Parallel 
any one of two or three other courses, except that a course 
little work is required in commercial subjects. The 
English course, so-called, does not usually require any 
more work in English than any other course. The 
name has a negative rather than a positive meaning, 
in that it signifies the absence of foreign language 
as a requirement These examples are given merely 
to show that the courses do not possess such prepon- 
derance of material as to warrant the designations. 
They show also that the subject that is supposed to 
constitute the center around which other material is 
to be organized does, as a matter of fact, perform 
no such service. The Classical, College Preparatory, 
and Latin courses are not usually subject to this 
criticism. They all indicate about the same thing, 
namely, a college preparatory course, and are made 
up of the old humanistic studies with English added. 
These courses not only indicate the emphasis upon 



212 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

certain subjects, but that the course as a whole serves 
one purpose, that of preparing for college. 
Criticisms The criticism upon this plan in general is that the 

o s p an or g an i2ation of the curriculum is not what it purports 
to be. The name of the course is supposed to in- 
dicate that it represents some controlling idea, that 
some particular type of subject represents the ideal 
or educational aim and that the course as a whole is 
so organized as to permit the realization of this aim. 
On the contrary, these courses too often represent a 
mere hodge-podge, and while the names indicate a 
wide range of educational opportunity, in reality they 
merely mean much ado about nothing. A manual 
training course, for example, that provides one or two 
years' work in wood and metal without the opportu- 
nity to study other subjects belonging in a course in 
manual training is a deception. This example will 
serve to illustrate what might be said of other so-called 
courses. Whatever the plan of organization may be, 
the facts should justify the educational principle which 
is supposed to underlie it. Any other view of the case, 
leads to meaningless terms and results in confusion. 
Required Another plan which is now in more common use is 

eiectives*" 1 that of free electives. This signifies that a few sub- 
jects are required of all students, and a relatively wide 
range of electives is offered from which a student may 
choose at will. We have used the word plan, however, 
in a very loose sense because it frequently happens that 
the so-called elective system means the absence of 
either plan or system. Requirements and electives 
under this plan may amount to the same thing as the 
loosely organized "courses" referred to above. The 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 213 

name of the system signifies nothing valuable unless 
it stands for some definite educational aim. Why 
have requirements at all? Or, on the other hand, why 
permit election of subjects? The answer to these 
questions if properly conceived will furnish the criteria 
in selecting the required subjects and will point to the 
conditions under which electives are to be chosen. 

The requirement that all students must pursue cer- Required 

t . 1 i ,. i , , subjects 

tarn subjects, in order to be valid, must be supported should 
by the actual fact that these subjects possess inherent JJJSw 
values from the point of view of the aim, not possessed value 
in the same degree by other subjects. The practice 
must be supported by another fact, viz. that the 
subjects are taught in such way and under such con- 
ditions as to render the realization of these values 
highly probable. No other basis than this will justify 
the selection of any subject or subjects, and require 
these to be pursued as over against other subjects that 
may be elected. It needs to be said here for the bene- 
fit of educational practice, if not educational theory, 
that the superior value assumed for any type of sub- 
ject matter in the absence of good teaching and favor- 
able conditions under which to carry on the work, has 
led to tremendous waste in education. 

The group system is a device that has been worked The group 
out to aid in the organization of subject matter. This 
system is quite extensively used in the colleges and 
employed to some extent in the high schools. If its 
use continues in the higher institutions, it is not un- 
likely that it will come into more general use in the 
high schools. The group system, in brief, is the select- 
ing of a particular field for the major work and then 



system 



214 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Lack of 

agreement 

regarding 

choice of 

minor 

subjects 



Criteria for 
determining 
relative 
values of 
subjects 



choosing other fields as minors. For example, the 
material science group or the language group or what- 
ever else may constitute the major work indicates that 
the student will specialize in the major field and will 
select from certain other fields for less extensive 
study. 

The system, however, is at present in a state of con- 
siderable confusion. There is general agreement that 
the language group, for example, should require the 
major work in the languages. But when we come to 
selecting minors from other groups the confusion 
arises. Some insist that the minors should be chosen 
in related fields in order to permit of a relatively high 
degree of specialization. Others with equal insistence 
declare that the minors should be chosen, in so far as 
may be possible, in such way as to insure breadth 
of education representing the larger cultural values. 
Until an agreement is reached concerning the relation 
which the minors in the group should bear to the 
major, no definite plan of organization will result. 

Assuming that there are one or more fields in which 
material will be found possessing higher educative 
value than in other fields, what are the criteria to be 
employed in determining what field or fields contain 
these higher values? The answer is none other than 
what has already been given in our discussion through- 
out the consideration of subject matter. The indi- 
vidual factors on the one hand, having to do with the 
needs and capacities of the adolescent, and social de- 
mands on the other hand, will determine the order of 
importance assigned to the various subjects. If these 
demands, psychological and social, were used as 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 215 

criteria in selecting subjects as well as subject matter, 
the curriculum would indicate more clearly than it now 
does, a well-defined educational policy. 

In answering this question, there are fortunately Most 
outstanding present needs of these young people de- needs oi 
manding attention. The high school period is the one Iearner 

. . must govern 

in which these needs will have to be met if they are 
met at all, and these potential capacities, if developed 
to the greatest advantage, must find opportunity for 
development during these years. Pupils are in the 
great transition period, and they will become some- 
thing other than they now are both physically and 
socially before these four years are past. They are 
forming permanent social attitudes. Interests are 
being determined and technique in social control is 
being worked out. 

If we are going to make requirements at all, it is Required 
evident that subject matter should be selected from determined 

those fields which possess the greatest values for these b ? these 

needs 
immediate purposes. If we look at the question from 

the side of social demands, any intelligent community 
would insist that the first ithing that the school must 
undertake to do is to help young people at the point 
of their greatest present needs. That material which 
furnishes the most direct point of contact, and which 
serves most directly in the processes of present devel- 
opment, should have right of way. Other material, 
lacking these essential qualities, will no doubt furnish 
valuable supplementary aid, but just because it is 
one or more degrees removed is sufficient to warrant 
giving it a secondary place. What applies most 
directly in securing normal physical development, and 



2l6 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Conditions 
hindering 
working of 
elective 
system 



Individual 

differences 

and social 

demands 

require 

electives 



in promoting present social control answers the ques- 
tion concerning what subjects should be required of all 
students. 

The question of electives is rather a vexed one be- 
cause of no general agreement as to underlying prin- 
ciples. One of the difficulties is that the term itself 
is capable of so many meanings. So-called free elec- 
tion may mean a great deal or it may mean very little. 
Even if free choice were allowed to every pupil, the 
curriculum is often so limited as to render very little 
choice possible. And again, if electives are allowed 
only upon the advice and with the permission of 
teachers, the system after all might differ very little 
from a course where the requirements were absolute. 
A further consideration is that the matter of making 
the program often enters into the case and interferes 
with an elective system. These and other conditions 
that might be mentioned, have rendered the whole 
situation extremely chaotic. The contending parties 
in the controversy concerning whether electives should 
be provided, and if so to what extent, have not infre- 
quently been talking about different things. It seems 
necessary because of the confusion of terms to dis- 
cuss the question of electives at more length than would 
otherwise be required. 

The underlying principle in support of an elective 
system is that individual needs and capacities, at least 
of a secondary sort, vary sufficiently to require some 
latitude in determining the course which an individual 
should pursue. Added to this is the further fact that 
the social demands, particularly those of the voca- 
tional activities, vary to an extent which makes neces- 



ORGANIZATION OF THE CURRICULUM 217 

sary some provision for satisfying these demands. In 
consequence of these demands, some consideration 
must be given to supplying the needs of individual 
students through a well worked out scheme of elec- 
tive subjects. Electives are not makeshifts. On the 
contrary, they are opportunities provided to meet in- 
dividual needs and capacities. The elective system 
requires that choices be made in such manner as to 
insure that its purpose be realized. 

The pupil unaided is not competent to make intelli- Conditions 

r r # c under which 

gent choices. It not infrequently happens that par- choices 
ents do not possess the necessary information to ^° de 
furnish proper guidance. The responsibility must 
rest largely upon the teachers. They must, however, 
possess the knowledge both of the individual and of 
the educational means referred to above. The ad- 
vantages of an elective system can be gained only 
by an intelligent administration of it. It must meet 
different individual needs and provide for differences 
in capacities or it fails of its purpose. If teachers are 
to give advice in the absence of knowledge and with- 
out a realization of the importance of intelligent 
choice, nothing but failure can be expected. It is 
important too that the advice be given in such way that 
the student will choose for himself and still choose 
wisely. One of the advantages that an elective study 
has over a required one, is the fact that the pupil does 
not feel that he is pursuing the subject under com- 
pulsion. This advantage should be secured as far as 
possible in the guiding process. The important thing 
after all is, however, that such choices be made as will 
result in the greatest good to the student. For a 



218 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

young person to go through high school choosing 
electives without chart or compass is intolerable. 

There is no particular virtue in any plan, per se, 
whether it be that of parallel courses, requirements 
and electives, or the so-called group system. Any of 
these constitutes a mere framework and does not in 
itself solve the problem of curriculum making. The 
only service rendered is to furnish a convenient form 
by means of which the content of the curriculum can 
be organized in the most useful way. In the appendix 
will be found a few courses of study, selected from 
a large number examined. These represent what 
some of the better high schools of the country are 
doing. They not only will be found useful to show 
what is being offered by these schools, but will also 
afford opportunity for comparison and criticism. 



B. THE SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 

CHAPTER XIX 

THE SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND THE CURRICULUM 

The high school, any school for that matter, is a The social 
social institution. The social character of the curric- of the 
ulum has already been pointed out. It grows up out sch ° o1 
of the social process and the aim is to have it so func- 
tion that it will aid in controlling the process. The 
curriculum contributes in giving to the school its 
social character, and is valuable just in proportion to 
its contribution in this particular. One reason why 
frequent revaluations of subject matter are called 
for, is because of the necessity of keeping its social 
contribution up to the highest point. But the curric- 
ulum accounts only in part for the social character 
of the school. Wherever we rind a group of people 
there we have some sort of social structure. The 
fundamental fact of a group is association, and this 
means that the members are in some sort of relation 
with one another. There are leaders and followers, 
and each is in turn influencing all the rest and is being 
influenced by the rest. A group is not a mere aggre- 
gation of individuals. No group can exist without 
common interests and common purposes. The indi- 
viduals act and react upon one another and out of 
these associations grow up social aims, and social 
means are chosen for realizing these aims. 



220 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

The kind of It is not a question then of whether we shall have 
structure a social situation, but rather what kind we shall have. 
Whether the aim of the group will harmonize with 
the aim of the school will depend upon the kind of 
social structure that we secure. If left to themselves, 
the young people will create some sort of social organi- 
zation and of a kind which will very probably be more 
or less antagonistic to the school. Not that they will 
purposely do this. But in the absence of proper direc- 
tion, self-appointed leaders who have natural tendencies 
to assert leadership will be instrumental in creating a 
social situation in the school, out of harmony with 
its best interests. 
The school The fact that the school is a social institution, for 
and a S ° C1 the reasons already pointed out, is the most significant 
socializing t h mg a bout it except one other fact. This fact is that 

institution ... .. . , _. . . 

it is primarily a socializing institution. This is true 
of course of any school, but is particularly true of the 
high school. The adolescent period is marked in no 
other way so distinctively as by the fact that it is a 
period of socialization. The reason for this is the 
peculiar social needs and interests of the adolescent. 
In no other respect should the high school differ so 
radically from other types of schools as in its social 
organization. This is true simply because socialization 
is taking place so rapidly during the adolescent period. 
What has been said concerning the curriculum and its 
contribution to the social character of the school, de- 
rives its full significance from the socializing function 
of the school. The social organization, like the intel- 
lectual organization, must be such as to promote this 
socializing process. 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 221 

Adolescents, no doubt, have an extremely keen in- Proper 

social 
setting 



terest in social organization and endeavor. But their s 



interests are not all social in this restricted and narrow 
sense. They have other interests, intellectual and 
vocational, of which account must be taken and to 
which the school, in the last analysis, must make 
appeal. The real problem is to give these interests a 
proper social setting and to create an adequate social 
environment in which the employments of the school 
are carried on. 

The problem of social organization is, in brief, a Problem of 
three-fold problem. First, to effect a social organi- atireSoid 
zation which will permit the most advantageous use one 
of the subject matter of the curriculum. Second, 
this organization must take into account the educa- 
tive value of group activities in purely social matters. 
And third, it must assist in solving the problem of 
school government in such a way as to promote respect 
for rightfully constituted authority and give adequate 
opportunity for experience in developing the power of 
self-control. In utilizing these means of socialization, 
the social instincts and interests of the pupils will 
receive proper direction and will be given sufficient 
opportunity for expression. 

The work of instruction cannot be successfully car- Relation of 
ried on in the absence of proper social organization, organization 
The first problem is to organize the school on the t0 the cur ~ 

. riculum 

social side, so that the subject matter may be used 
in a way that will be most efficient in furthering the 
socializing process. This has both a negative and a 
positive side. We must first of all safeguard the 
school against a social organization that will interfere 



222 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Class-room 
group the 
primary 
group of 
the school 



Importance 
of this fact 



with its chief work, that of giving instruction. One 
of the reasons why a good beginning is so necessary is 
that in the absence of a definite educational policy, a 
social structure develops through the initiative of the 
pupils themselves which makes it very difficult to 
carry on the work of the school. Too much emphasis 
cannot be placed upon the fact that social structures 
will develop. If these do not develop as the result 
of a definite educational policy, they will develop by 
sheer force of the fact of having a group of people 
who are considerably like-minded because of common 
social interests. The emphasis here is upon the fact 
that if we wish to prevent a social structure developing 
which is out of harmony with the aim of the school, 
the only way is to provide one that is in harmony 
with it. 

The most important group of the school is the class- 
room group. The recitation where the teacher and 
pupils meet for the consideration of tasks already 
assigned and for the assignment of other tasks, should 
be the chief means of socialization within the school. 
This is true, however, only when group interests are 
taken into account in setting up standards, and group 
activities are taken advantage of in carrying on the 
work. Intellectual interests are, in the last analysis, 
social in character and the group interests of the class 
should be properly utilized. 

In recent years there has been much written concern- 
ing the necessity for improvement in the social life 
of the school. No inconsiderable amount of this 
discussion has been not only unfruitful but even harm- 
ful, just because it has failed to recognize that the 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 223 

class-room group is the one upon which chief reliance 
must be placed. The result has been to lessen its 
importance in the eyes of both pupils and teachers. 

In the discussion of this group from the standpoint The nature 

. . ■ of the group 

of its social organization, it is necessary to deal with 
certain very elementary considerations. We usually 
speak of the class-room group as though it simply 
represented the pupils as individuals, on the one side, 
and the teacher as a sort of a question mark, on the 
other. Too frequently, in practice, if not in theory, 
we assume that the recitation hour merely furnishes 
opportunity for the teacher to hear one lesson and to 
assign another one. It is further assumed that the 
relation is between the teacher and each pupil, and that 
the pupils bear no relation to one another. That is 
to say, we have a mere aggregate of individuals each 
of whom is responsible to the teacher for the perform- 
ance of a certain task, and that from the standpoint 
of junction, we have no social group at all. This false 
assumption lies at the very root of most of the diffi- 
culty arising in the school. It gives rise to a situation 
resulting in poor work and in the most vexatious 
problems connected with matters of discipline. 

The first thing demanding attention on the part Functioning 
of the teacher is to secure the proper functioning of ° a \„ group 
the right sort of group aim. When we talk about 
the aim of the recitation we are not referring to the 
aim of the teacher nor to the aim of the pupils as indi- 
viduals, but rather is the reference to both teacher and 
pupils as a group, having common interests and com- 
mon purposes. The only assurance of successful work 
in the class-room is the presence of interests that can 



224 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

be relied upon to unite all the members of the group, 
the teacher and the pupils, in a common endeavor. 
One of the difficulties arises frequently out of the 
attempt to create interests where we have no right 
to expect any. It is the teacher's duty to find the 
point of contact and to establish relations between 
those things in which the pupils are now interested, and 
those things in which we hope they will become inter- 
ested. Lack of attention in the class-room usually 
means that there are group interests interfering with 
the aim of the recitation, while attention means that 
the group interests and the aim are in harmony, 
standards The relations which the pupils sustain to each other 

o e group j n ^ dass-room are of great importance. The group 
feeling is strong and it can be made to function power- 
fully in promoting the success of the work undertaken. 
If the standards set up are in reality group standards, 
they will serve as incentives to good work. There can 
be no interests that can be relied upon in the absence 
of this kind of standards. We all know well enough 
that standards function only when they are felt to 
be actual standards of performance by those engaged 
in the group activity. They are vital only in the de- 
gree in which responsibility is felt for their maintenance. 
This is true whether we refer to standards of work or 
standards of conduct. How can proper standards be 
secured, and how can they be made to function, are 
pertinent questions. 
Leadership Social standards mean common interests and pur- 
poses and this implies cooperation among all the mem- 
bers of the group. In order to get these standards set 
up at all and in order to get them to function, there 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 225 

must be those who take the initiative and who feel 
the sense of responsibility. There will be leadership 
in the class. There is always leadership where we have 
a social group of any kind. Whether it is of the right 
kind, is another question, and this is the crucial point 
in the whole situation. What we are saying concern- 
ing the class-room group could be said with equal cer- 
tainty of any social group. We are simply making 
application of universal principles to a particular situ- 
ation. The foot-ball coach knows well enough that 
these things that we are saying are true. He knows 
that unless he can develop a competent leadership 
within the team he cannot develop a team upon which 
he can rely. He knows further that no mere ma- 
chinery of organization will secure a spirit of coopera- 
tion so necessary in any successful group activity. The 
class-room teacher should be equally wise and realize 
that he must rely upon a leadership within the class 
and a spirit of cooperation among its members, if he 
is to give to his work the social setting so necessary 
to success. The lack of proper spirit in the class 
can be attributed more often to failure of the teacher 
than to any other cause. The teacher fails first in 
aim. This aim in order to function properly must be 
a group aim which is of course formulated clearly and 
definitely by the teacher. In the absence of such formu- 
lation, there can be no spirit of cooperation in the class. 
What the teacher needs to realize is that until the aim 
formulated by him becomes the aim of the class as a 
whole, it fails to function as a unifying influence. In 
order to determine this intelligently, there are certain 
considerations which have to be taken into account. 



226 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Interests 
and 

capacities 
of members 
of the group 



Subject 
matter in 
relation to 
group 
interests 



The first of these considerations is a knowledge of 
the interests and capacities of the individuals com- 
posing the group. The preparation which they have 
had for the work and all possible social motives which 
can be successfully appealed to, are to be taken into 
account. It is entirely conceivable that a class pur- 
suing the same general subject in one school, or that 
classes in the same school at different times, would 
require that some adjustments be made to meet their 
needs. No one can plan the work in detail except 
the teacher who possesses all available knowledge of 
individual differences secured in the presence of the 
concrete problem. Printed courses of study are useful 
merely as general guides. To follow one of these 
implicitly is to neglect a vital consideration, viz. 
first hand knowledge of the preparation, capabilities, 
and interests of the individuals who constitute the 
class. 

The teacher must further have an intimate and vital 
knowledge of the contribution which is possible to the 
type of subject matter being employed. It is essential, 
as has been pointed out, that the aim correspond with 
the capabilities and interests of the pupils. There 
can be no true educational aim in the absence of such 
correspondence. The means, however, of realizing the 
aim are no less important. Emphasis has already 
been placed upon the fact that in the various types 
of subject matter each makes its own contribution 
in its own way. This involves on the part of the 
teacher a thorough knowledge of subject matter, and 
ability to organize it for teaching purposes. This 
does not mean simply that the teacher should have 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 227 

a wide range of information, nor that mere specializa- 
tion in a subject equips one to teach it. It too fre- 
quently happens, that a high degree of specialization 
contributes to the failure of the teacher to take suf- 
ficiently into account the necessity for selecting and 
organizing the material in accordance with the aim 
which can be determined only by taking into account 
the pupils to be taught. The teacher should regard 
the subject matter from the point of view of finding 
a group interest and a motive for group activity. The 
social character of the class-room group needs empha- 
sis nowhere more than it does when material is being 
chosen and organized. 

Taking into account these two factors, the personnel Daily 
of the class and the subject matter to be used in instruc- fa the work* 
tion, the general plan for the work of the semester or 
the year can be intelligently determined. These plans, 
however, at best can be only general in character. 
There remains the extremely important fact that ad- 
justment and readjustment must be made from day 
to day as the work goes on. Elimination of some 
subject matter selected and the introduction of other 
matter to take its place will be one of the readjustments 
made necessary in the program of the work. It is not 
unlikely, too, that some other organization of material 
will be called for in order to meet the contingencies 
that arise. And finally there will be the shift of em- 
phasis that must take place as the work progresses. 
The teacher's duty in these particulars is a very impor- 
tant one, and the success or the failure in class instruc- 
tion is largely determined by the wisdom exercised in 
making these necessary readjustments. 



228 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Preparation 
of the lesson 
on the part 
of the 
teacher 



Conducting 

the 

recitation 



There are several factors entering in here, none of 
which can be left out of account in any fruitful dis- 
cussion of the topic under consideration. The first 
of these is the preparation of the lesson on the part 
of the teacher. In the preparation of the lesson, two 
things must be kept constantly in mind. One is 
that the lesson must be prepared from the standpoint 
of its proper assignment. The other is preparation 
from the standpoint of teaching it. These two points 
of view from which to regard the preparation require 
emphasis. To set the task properly is a long step 
toward success. If the class leaves the class-room 
today knowing precisely what the task is, and, with 
an aroused interest in its preparation, there is reason- 
able assurance that the class will return tomorrow 
prepared for the recitation. If, however, too little is 
done by way of explanation, or if too much is done, 
or if the right thing is not done when the lesson is 
assigned, the pupils will work under such disadvantage 
in preparing the lesson that failure is the only logical 
result. There can be no interest or unity of effort in 
the absence of a proper assignment of the lesson. 

A task properly assigned, as important as that is, 
by no means completes the teacher's work. The con- 
ducting of the recitation itself is a duty for which 
the teacher must prepare in advance each day. An 
intimate knowledge of the subject matter, a definite 
aim as to what should be accomplished, and an equally 
definite plan concerning the part the teacher is to 
play and that each pupil is to play, are all necessary. 
Some shifts will have to be made as the work of the 
day progresses, but in a general way the recitation will 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 229 

be successful in the degree that the teacher has made 

definite plans for the work of the recitation hour. It 

is desirable to repeat here that in preparing, both for 

its assignment and its teaching, the teacher must take 

into account the group situation upon which we have 

placed emphasis throughout our discussion. 

It is not the purpose here to discuss methodology Method 

in detail. We are concerned rather in placing empha- group 

sis upon the fact that successful method must take Ration 

... mto 

into account the group situation. It is rather strange account 

that we lose sight of this in employing two of the 
so-called methods of conducting the recitation. For 
some reason, in practice if not in theory, it is assumed 
that the question method and the topic method are 
modes of dealing with individuals, while the lecture 
method is the only one which deals with the class as 
a whole. A pupil who is reciting either upon a topic 
or in answer to a question, should be no less the center 
of interest than is the teacher when making a state- 
ment of fact. It is necessary to have each member 
of the group, and this of course includes the teacher, 
contribute to the success of the recitation. 

Attention is not always necessary to the same de- a test of 
tail of the recitation, but attention to some phase of method 
the work on the part of everyone is required. The 
outstanding problem is to maintain throughout the 
whole period the social solidarity of the group. Con- 
sequently in considering method, the teacher should 
realize that the severest test and also the most vital 
test of whether a method is working satisfactorily, is 
determined by whether it has a tendency to disintegrate 
the class or to hold it together. 



23° 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Testing 
results 



Individual 
and class 
instruction 



In order to determine whether the socializing process 
is actually going on, we have to apply other tests than 
those which ascertain whether the pupils as individuals 
have acquired in a more or less satisfactory degree 
certain information contained in the subject matter. 
This latter fact can be determined after a fashion 
by a system of examinations. This method is useful 
enough for its purpose, but it by no means reveals the 
truth concerning the whole situation. If the socializ- 
ing process is being aided by the use of the subject 
matter, there ought to be some evidence of this other 
than a mere revelation of whether the pupil has mas- 
tered the subject matter. The best evidence that the 
socializing process is going on, is the manifestation of 
a spirit of cooperation in the work through which it is 
hoped to achieve the end in view. A pupil who makes 
no contribution in the class-room to the successful 
work of the class as a whole, much less the pupil who 
actually willfully interferes with it, is in all probability 
not receiving very much from the instruction that will 
result in greater social efficiency. The test of whether 
a method is working successfully is in the last analysis 
a social test. 

There should be no controversy over the relative 
merits of individual instruction and class instruction 
in case we are dealing with normal individuals. Within 
reasonable limits of variation, granting that the teacher 
knows how to handle a group, the pupil who is a mem- 
ber of the class has a decided advantage over the one 
who works alone. The teacher who fails to recognize 
the advantage of having a number of pupils grouped 
together for purposes of instruction, fails to grasp the 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 231 

educational significance of social organization. The 
fact that there are different kinds and degrees of ability, 
unless the variation is too great, is not a hindrance if 
the fact is recognized and provided for in the manage- 
ment of the class. There are some kinds of work in 
which group work is more difficult to carry on success- 
fully, but it is doubtful whether this difficulty is ever 
so great that it is not more than offset by the advantage 
to the pupil of working with his fellows. The adoles- 
cent is peculiarly susceptible to social stimulus, and no 
less significant is the social character of the response. 

With the foregoing in mind, individual instruction Provision 
which is always more or less necessary, will have its ^diSl " 
proper setting and will bring its largest returns. Any interests 
plan of individual instruction, however, which in effect capacities 
isolates the pupil from his fellows, interferes with the 
integrity of the class and deprives the individual of 
the social setting for his work. There are always those 
in the class who are capable of doing more work and 
others who are capable of doing less work than the 
average member of the class. The former should be 
given opportunity to make special contributions to 
the work of the class, and the latter should also receive 
every encouragement to contribute as much as pos- 
sible to the success of the work. The standards set by 
those of superior ability will act as incentives to the 
class only when the least competent are made to feel 
that their work is necessary to the success of the class. 
The individual differences are thus recognized, without 
isolating either the more capable or the less capable. 

The class-room group, as has been pointed out, 
constitutes the center around which the social organ- 



232 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

Relation of ization of the school is to be maintained. The other 
to the class- groups have no different aim than this one. The means 
room group on jy are different. No organization should be tol- 
erated in the high school which is not under the 
direction of the school authorities and which does not 
contribute in its own way to the socializing process, 
as conditioned by the aim of the school. Socialization 
of some sort will go on whether or no. The business 
of the school is to see to it that it goes on in the right 
way. Even if it were possible to eliminate all other 
groups from the school, it would not be desirable to 
do so even from the standpoint of the success of the 
class-room work. There are two reasons why this is 
so. First, they furnish a proper social environment 
inside of which the class-room work can be carried on. 
And second, they furnish opportunity for enlargement 
of the class-room work itself. 
Need of A proper social environment is a primary considera- 

en^ronment tion. The teacher who imagines that the significant 
life of the school begins and ends in the class-room 
imagines a vain thing. The social impulses are seek- 
ing and finding outlet at every turn. Association, not 
isolation, explains the situation in all of its various 
aspects. It is simply a question of how much of this 
social life the school will control, and whether it will 
so exercise control as to unify it and make every 
part of it contribute to the realization of the aim of 
secondary instruction. A proper school spirit cannot 
be created in the class-room alone. The interests 
there are too narrow and the employments too re- 
stricted. It is necessary to correlate other interests 
and other employments found outside the class-room* 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 233 

The only way to secure proper correlation is through 
an educational policy which recognizes the possibilities 
in the situation and which provides a means of con- 
trol in harmony with the policy. This in no way 
minimizes the importance of the class-room work. 
It rather recognizes its limitations and undertakes 
to give to it its proper setting. We have always 
and everywhere a choice between a general social situ- 
ation which hinders or one which helps, and wisdom 
dictates the choice of the latter. Any policy which 
promotes interest in the school and encourages loyalty 
to its standards and pride in its achievements, thereby 
promotes and sustains proper school spirit. 

The extent to which other organizations may be An fflustra- 
made to aid in promoting interest in class-room work is taon 
a matter of vital importance. One of the reasons why 
class-room work is not more successful is because its 
relation to the whole life of the school is not taken 
into account and utilized. By way of illustration 
a notable exception of this neglect may be cited. The 
chorus, the glee club, and the orchestra are organ- 
izations recognized as necessary to successful instruc- 
tion in music. Other subject matter is limited far 
more than music in this particular, but the principle 
that governs is the same. Whether separate organi- 
zations are always necessary is not important. The 
point is that whenever possible the class-room work 
should lead to group activities outside the class-room. 
And we are speaking now wholly of the relation which 
this has to the class-room work itself. Later we shall 
consider its value from another point of view. Some 
of the activities to which class-room work should lead 



234 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Principle 
does not 
apply in 
the same 
degree to 
all subjects 



Segregation 
of pupils in 
some lines 
of work 



are debate, dramatic representation, oratorical con- 
tests, scientific demonstrations, exhibits of work in 
manual and domestic art, and other activities of the 
same general nature as those enumerated. No one 
would assume that the instruction relating to phys- 
ical education which does not lead to activities out- 
side of the class-room, would have any particular 
value. The principle which should guide throughout 
is that wherever possible the results of the work of the 
class-room should be put to some school use, both 
as a stimulus to class-room work, and as means of fur- 
nishing larger opportunity for expression. 

It is evident, as stated above, that all subject matter 
of instruction does not yield in the same degree to this 
sort of treatment. All that can be said is that some 
subject matter is thus limited, but this is no reason 
why all subject matter should be put in the same 
category. The mathematics teacher may inquire how 
this principle applies to his work. The answer would 
have to be conditioned first by the kind of mathematics 
that he is teaching. In any event, the principle would 
not apply to the same extent that it does to some 
other lines of work. This principle like any other is 
valid where it works and in the degree in which it 
works. That it does work to some extent, and in some 
relations to a large extent, renders it valid and useful. 

Segregation of pupils in certain lines of work of the 
high school has much justification. Whether it be 
due to sex differences or to social influences, girls' 
interests in certain lines of work differ from those of 
boys, and the social demands which will be made upon 
girls are sufficiently differentiated to call for provision 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND CURRICULUM 235 

for meeting these demands. The social organization 
of the school should in larger degree take into account 
these psychological and social considerations. In 
physical education, because of social taboos if for no 
other reasons, segregation is necessary if anything 
like thoroughness in instruction is accomplished. In 
material science, social science, and the manual arts, 
group interests can be appealed to much more success- 
fully if the boys and girls are separated. Segregation 
is one of the means through which the appeal to group 
interests can be made effective and adequate prepa- 
ration for social service made more certain. 

Thus far we have discussed the social character of Curriculum 

not only 

the school from the standpoint of the class-room group, factor con- 
But the curriculum is not the only factor which con- ^ ci ^f ng t0 
tributes either to the social character of the school or character 
to its socializing function. The associations within sc hool 
the school must be utilized in order to realize upon all 
the means at our command. We have said that even 
if it were possible, it would be undesirable to eliminate 
them. The problem is to utilize them in such way 
that they will not only contribute to the success of 
the class-room work, but that they will also make an 
additional contribution toward the more complete per- 
formance of the function of the school. This phase 
of the problem will receive attention in the succeeding 
chapter. 



CHAPTER XX 

THE SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND TRAINING FOR 
SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 

Social needs In any fruitful discussion of the social organization 
people 02 °f the n ^§ n scno °l> it must be taken into account that 
the social instincts and interests of adolescents are 
seeking opportunity for expression. If these oppor- 
tunities are not furnished by the school, they will be 
sought elsewhere. Young people crave social life and 
it must in one way or another be provided. The 
class-room work does not furnish sufficient opportunity 
for meeting these needs and satisfying these demands. 
The question which the high school must answer is, 
whether it will compel the young people to rely upon 
organizations resulting from their own initiative or 
whether it will provide for such organizations. The 
duty of directing and controlling the social life of 
young people is an important one, and the high school 
is the only means through which the average com- 
munity can exercise intelligent and adequate direction 
and control. 
Functions of In planning the social organization of the high school, 
organization two things nee d to be kept in mind. The first of these 
is the necessity of a proper social environment inside 
which the work of the class-room can be carried on 
successfully. This has already been discussed. The 
second point needing emphasis is that the social organ- 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 237 

ization itself, aside from its relation to the class-room 
work, may be made to function as an agency in direct- 
ing and controlling the whole process of socialization. 

If we were to regard this matter only from the nega- Necessity 
tive side and inquire, what is one of the hindrances ridLng'for 
to the successful work of the school and to the proper leisure 
up-bringing of the youth of any community, we should 
find that it is the manner in which the young people 
spend their leisure time. No teacher need be told 
that the social organizations, instituted and controlled 
by the pupils of the high school, frequently interfere 
seriously with the school work. This situation con- 
stitutes a very practical problem which thrusts itself 
upon the school and which the school is wholly unable 
to grapple with in the absence of a proper social organi- 
zation of its own. These social functions may be 
harmless enough in themselves. But the frequency 
with which they occur and the late hours incident to 
them and the absence of direction and control, render 
them hindrances to the work of the school; and they 
too frequently have a demoralizing influence upon the 
young people themselves. 

In discussing organizations outside the school, we Greek letter 
cannot leave out of account a certain type of organi- societies 
zation which is perhaps the most troublesome, the 
most difficult to deal with, and the most demoralizing 
of them all. We refer here to the Greek letter societies. 
All school administrators and teachers are practically 
in agreement that these organizations are always and 
everywhere subversive of the interests of the school. 
Whatever good reason there may be for them in the 
college or the university, the reason is not valid in 



2 3 8 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Reasons for 

their 

persistence 



Problem 
must be 
dealt with 
construct- 
ively 



any degree when applied to the high school. The 
universal testimony is that the influence of these 
organizations, not only upon their membership but 
also upon the high school as a whole, is always de- 
moralizing. So aroused have some communities be- 
come that legislatures have been appealed to and the 
aid of courts has been invoked in an attempt to sup- 
press them. 

There is no defense that can be successfully made 
for these organizations. They are undemocratic in 
spirit, maintain false social standards, inculcate a 
spirit of snobbery, and, in a word, are thoroughly 
un-American. In spite of this indictment against them, 
however, it is not difficult to account for their perni- 
cious persistency. They arise out of a perfectly normal 
tendency in adolescent life. The young people do not 
form these organizations because they want to do 
immoral things, or because they wish to defy author- 
ity. It is rather because they are seeking outlet for 
their social impulses that can be found only in some 
type of social organization which will satisfy their 
peculiar social cravings and interests. The fact that 
it is a Greek letter society or that it is called a fraternity 
or a sorority, has no significance in itself. It is the 
character of the organization, the fact that it is uncon- 
trolled, that it has no proper social motive, viewed from 
the standpoint of the school, and that it cannot func- 
tion in any useful way, that renders it intolerable. 

The only proper solution of the problem is to deal 
with the situation in a constructive way. Mere pro- 
hibitions concerning these organizations and against 
social functions in general are futile. They create 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 239 

antagonism, lead to deception and misunderstanding 
and utterly fail to solve the problem. The community 
and the school both need to recognize more fully that 
the young people in forming these organizations and 
in promoting social functions, are exhibiting perfectly 
natural tendencies and that the only abnormal thing 
about it is that these tendencies are rinding expression 
in the wrong way. 

The high school should undertake to care more Positive 
largely for the social interests, even if it were to benefit ^problem 
the school only in a negative way. It is worth doing, 
even if the effort resulted only in preventing those 
activities which have a tendency to undermine the 
work of the school. But there are positive reasons 
why the school should undertake to perform this duty. 
Socialization can not be accomplished alone by the 
influence of the curriculum, however efficiently the 
work of the class-room may be performed. It has to 
be accomplished in part through social organizations 
which, on the one hand, supply the proper stimulus to 
social activities and, on the other hand, provide oppor- 
tunities for proper social expression. It is probably 
true in most communities that the actual socializing 
influences are to be found in larger degree outside the 
school than within it. Some of the influences are un- 
directed and uncontrolled, and are opposed to the best 
interests of the community and of the young people 
themselves. The demand is that this process, now too 
largely undirected and uncontrolled, be directed and 
controlled by the school. Too many communities have 
no educational policy comprehensive enough to pro- 
vide for the needs and interests of its young people. 



240 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The work 
in social 
centers 



A proper 
high school 
function 



One of the most striking illustrations of the influence 
exerted by constructive educative policies is furnished 
by the work being carried on in some of the social 
centers. A visit to Hull House, located in one of the 
industrial districts of Chicago, reveals what can be 
done and what is in fact being done through a well- 
defined educational policy. In the first place, the work 
being carried on there is a complete refutation of the as- 
sumption that young people prefer to spend their leisure 
time in ways against which we all make such vigorous 
protest. The dance-halls, the pool-rooms, and ques- 
tionable resorts of every sort have not abated in the 
least their attempts to attract the young people to 
these places. At Hull House the amusements are sane 
and wholesome, wisely directed and under proper con- 
trol. No questionable amusements and no rowdyism, 
and yet the number of young people found there on 
any evening is limited only by the facilities at the com- 
mand of those who have the work in charge. One 
sees there boys and girls, mostly of the adolescent age, 
engaged in work or play, ostensibly managing their 
own affairs, orderly, contented, and law-abiding. This 
illustration is given not because every community 
should undertake to solve its problem through the 
use of these precise means, but because it does demon- 
strate what every community should attempt to do with 
the means most readily at its command. 

The high school is the institution in the average 
community upon which the responsibility of perform- 
ing this task must rest. There are two reasons for 
this. In the first place, this larger undertaking by 
the school would result in a more vital interest in the 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 241 

work of the school on the part of both pupils and 
parents. Where an effort has been made to constitute 
the high school the social center for the young people 
of a community, their response has been so hearty and 
the spirit of cooperation so manifest that no doubt 
has prevailed concerning their appreciation of the 
undertaking. The parents have been quick to see the 
significance and meaning of the endeavor. Their 
interest has been aroused in the school and its work, 
and a working basis has been established upon which 
closer relationship between the home and the school 
could be maintained. 

The second reason why the high school should con- Relation of 
stitute the social center, is the fact that high school totiie* er 
teachers are better qualified than any others who can problem 
be secured to undertake the work. In a previous 
chapter reference was made to the repeated failure of 
well-intentioned undertakings because of the lack of 
proper direction and management. The whole history 
of community endeavor is largely a history of failure, 
and no other result than this can be expected in the 
absence of a trained leadership to direct and carry on 
the work. Teachers should be qualified for the work, 
and if they are not, it is an evidence of their unfitness 
for the work which they are now attempting to do in 
the more restricted sphere of the activity of the school. 

An argument frequently used against the school Need of an 
undertaking this task is that the various organiza- p ^y ° n 
tions necessary to success will interfere with the work 
now carried on. This argument is no doubt valid 
in the absence of a definite educational policy which 
includes these social activities and which provides for 



242 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

adequate direction and control. Without such defi- 
nite policy, nothing but failure can be expected. On 
the other hand, under proper direction and control 
these activities will not only not interfere with the 
work as it is now carried on but will actually promote 
it. The class-room work will be given a proper social 
setting, and the problem of school government will be 
rendered more largely an educational problem than 
it now is. At the present time so few of the activities 
are directed and controlled by the school that the 
problem of government is chiefly one of negative con- 
trol exercised for the sole purpose of restraint. 
School The purpose of this larger undertaking by the school 

should have . . . , , ., § , ... 

more com- is to give it more complete control of all the activities 
piete control j you ^. One of the causes of waste in education is 

over activi- J 

ties the failure to plan for play as well as for work and 

thus utilize as fully as possible all the interests of those 
who come within the influence of the school. One of the 
difficulties now in the high school situation is brought 
about by the isolation in which its work is usually car- 
ried on. There is lack of proper unity in the life of the 
pupils because of the break between life without the 
school and within it. Further than this, the school does 
not control a sufficient amount of the pupils' time to 
give proper direction and to render its work most 
effective. Any type of social organization that will 
remove these difficulties, will go a long way in assuring 
that the work of the school will be performed in a 
more satisfactory manner than is now being done. It is 
not improbable that the school year will be lengthened. 
But before doing this, we should more fully utilize the 
time of the school year as it is now constituted. 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 243 

The problem of organization is a thoroughly prac- Value of 
tical one, and in the absence of definite educational ^^ etc 
policy no solution can reasonably be expected. Social- reiation- 
ization, whether it be regarded from the more narrow 
point of view or whether it be looked at from the stand- 
point of civic efficiency or from the angle of moral and 
ethical considerations, results from concrete social 
relationships. Young people have to have experience 
in social affairs. They have to learn how to evaluate 
situations, how to adjust themselves to these, and 
how, through cooperation with others, to secure social 
control. Experience cannot be secured except through 
direct participation. This means that they must take 
the initiative, assume responsibility, and put to a 
practical test the means employed in realizing social 
ends. Pupils, however, lack experience and do not 
possess sufficiently mature judgment to carry on these 
activities in the absence of direction, and it is the duty 
of the school to provide such direction as is needed. 

The first step in the process of putting these organ- importance 
izations upon a proper basis, is to see to it that they San^sodai" 
are properly standardized. The difficulty is, if pupils organiza- 
are left to themselves, false standards are set up. One 
of the chief evils usually connected with the social 
group within the school, is lack of character due in 
turn to the absence of proper standards. Standardi- 
zation is of far more importance than the mere machin- 
ery of organization, even from the point of view of 
the interests of the pupils themselves. 

The first requisite for the success of any school group Standardiza- 
is a proper standardization of membership. This is membership 
necessary to the welfare of the school as a whole, but 



244 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Class-room 
work basis 
for stand- 
ardization 



at this point emphasis should be placed upon the 
welfare of the group itself. One of the reasons why- 
social groups outside the school so often fail to func- 
tion in any helpful way is that requirements for mem- 
bership bear no real relation to the nature of the 
work undertaken. If this mistake is to be avoided 
within the school, care must be exercised at the 
outset in seeing to it that the membership of any 
group is so conditioned as to make possible the stand- 
ardization of the work which the organization under- 
takes to carry on. 

The work of the class-room furnishes the proper 
basis for such standardization. To make successful 
work in the class-room a requisite for membership in 
the various other school groups, not only furnishes 
a stimulus to good work in the class-room, but what is 
more important for our purpose here, it gives character 
to the groups in which membership is so conditioned. 
To make membership stand for something worth while 
is the surest way of enlisting the interests of pupils. 
The spirit, however, in which the test is applied goes 
very far in determining its real value. If the test 
is applied merely to compel better work in the class 
and the pupils fail to see any relation between it and 
any real standardization of the other groups, its appli- 
cation is of doubtful value. It may secure, under 
protest, a higher standard of work of a mechanical sort, 
but it will not improve the spirit of the work, and this 
is the important thing. Let it be understood that these 
scholarship tests are applied in the interest of the work 
of the social organizations, and the great majority of 
pupils will yield hearty response to the requirements. 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 245 

It is necessary to standardize membership in these standardi- 
social organizations, but it is equally important that activities 
the activities also be standardized. The first require- 
ment after membership is properly safeguarded, is to 
provide a motive that will furnish a social bond and 
will function in harmony with the whole purpose of 
the school. There is no advantage gained in bringing 
these organizations within the school unless a social 
motive can be furnished that will result in unified, pur- 
poseful effort. One of the dangers to be avoided is the 
presence of social organizations which have no legiti- 
mate school purpose. They sap the life of the school 
and fail to make helpful contribution to the develop- 
ment of those who compose the membership. In 
determining whether any particular type of organiza- 
tion is desirable, it is necessary to inquire whether it 
stands for some legitimate social motive viewed from 
the standpoint of the interests of the school. Any 
organization within the school that is isolated from 
its great fundamental interests, serves as a hindrance 
to successful administration. 

No doubt many of our schools are burdened with importance 
organizations that serve no useful purpose. The functioning 
multiplicity of organizations within the school, in the of a proper 

socidJ, 

absence of a well-defined policy for their control, motive 
hinders rather than helps the school in performing its 
work. If we were to go outside the school, it would 
not be difficult to find organizations the usefulness of 
which would be greatly increased through the function- 
ing of a definite social motive. What is the social 
bond holding together the young people's religious 
societies in the average community? From the young 



246 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

people's point of view, what is the social motive func- 
tioning in these organizations? And looking at the 
matter still through their eyes, what is the type of 
social endeavor possible to united effort? A serious 
attempt to answer these questions would result in a 
partial explanation, at least, of why these organiza- 
tions are so difficult to keep alive and why so little 
relatively is accomplished through them. This is not 
an attack upon the worthy aim of these organizations, 
nor should it be regarded as an expression of lack of 
appreciation of the good purposes of those who are 
endeavoring to unite young people in fruitful Chris- 
tian work. It is rather an attempt to point out in a 
constructive way why these worthy endeavors are 
not more successful. The ideal set up for any organ- 
ization must function as a motive if it avails anything. 
If it does not, one of two things will happen. The 
organization will be such only in name and member- 
ship, will signify nothing worth while either to the 
individuals or to the community. Or by sheer force 
of the fact of social relationships some motive will arise 
which will not function in harmony with the ideal con- 
ceived by the founders of the organization. The net 
result is an organization not functioning in any vital 
way or in the wrong way. 
Mere These examples found outside the school are cited 

machinery . 

does not because they are familiar to all and furnish illustra- 

socTa\ ltUte ti° n of the futility of an organization in the absence 

organization f some social endeavor that needs to be carried on. 

Further than this, the endeavor must be such as can 

be and will be carried on successfully, taking into 

account the interests and capabilities of those who 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 247 

are responsible for the management of the organization. 
Not a few organizations within the school, as well 
as those without it, do not fulfill these conditions. 
Mere machinery of organization in the absence of 
some social need and without adequate means of pur- 
poseful control, does not constitute social organization. 
The latter presupposes a necessary work to be done 
in which the members have a vital interest and which 
they are capable of doing through united effort. 

Organizations outside the school are no doubt diffi- Class-room 

. rr • -n, • work basis 

cult to standardize m any effective way. But withm forstand- 
the school, there is no excuse for the existence of any ^vities 
organization which does not contribute its share toward 
the realization of the socializing aim of the school. 
The class-room work furnishes opportunity not only 
for standardizing the membership, but also for stand- 
ardizing the work attempted. Some subject matter 
yields more readily to such treatment than does other 
subject matter. But the fact still holds that the 
class-room work provides interests that can be util- 
ized in many of the social activities of the school. 
Reference has already been made to the importance 
of these activities in furnishing breadth of interest to 
class-room work. At this point it is necessary to 
emphasize the value of making use of these interests 
in activities whose purpose is to render the school 
more efficient in carrying on its work of socialization. 

Music is one of the subjects which can be easily Music as an 
and fruitfully utilized for standardizing social organi- mustration 
zations. As individuals, high school pupils, particu- 
larly boys, have but little interest in music. But when 
the work is given a social setting in glee clubs, choruses, 



248 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



English and 

other 

subjects 



The voca- 
tional 
subjects 



and orchestras, their attitude is completely changed. 
As has been pointed out, barring the fact that boys 
are not able to sing at a certain stage of the adolescent 
period, their musical organizations are quite as suc- 
cessful as those of girls. When a group is formed for 
accomplishing a definite thing in music in which the 
whole school is concerned, interest is aroused not 
because of the machinery of the organization, but 
because of the successful appeal which can be made 
to group motives. 

English furnishes abundant material for group work. 
If the right emphasis is employed in the class-room 
work, both the content and the spirit of the work can 
be carried over easily and naturally into various social 
activities. The dramatic interest, for example, can 
be relied upon and if properly utilized it not only 
secures better work in the class-room, but also pro- 
vides an extremely useful basis for supplying both 
group motives and material for social endeavor. Other 
subject matter, such as material and social science 
and the modern languages, gives opportunity for 
standardizing group activities. Debating leagues, sci- 
ence and language clubs, and like organizations ful- 
fill requirements on the social side, while at the same 
time they promote those intellectual interests which 
in themselves have distinctive socializing value. 

In the departments representing the vocational in- 
terests like opportunity is found. We have already 
spoken of the social character of these interests, and 
the group motive is even more easily appealed to here 
than in those subjects which we think of as more ex- 
clusively intellectual in character. The manual and 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 249 

household arts offer possibilities not only in the class- 
room but outside as well, for fruitful expression of 
group consciousness that appeals to the interests of the 
pupils and at the same time affords a type of experi- 
ence that is truly educative in character. The con- 
clusion of the whole matter is that the strongest appeal 
that can be made to high school students is, after all, 
to those interests which may be properly designated 
as school interests. Fortunately, it is not necessary 
to make these interests secondary, or to sugar-coat 
them with a detail of organization that tends to obscure 
the real function of the school. 

There is a type of organization in almost every high Utilizin g , 

, class organi- 

school which may be rendered very effective in carry- zations 
ing on social activities. We refer to the class organiza- 
tion. This organization appears to be inevitable and 
unless some useful purpose is found for it, it is very 
apt to be a source of trouble to the school. Class 
"scraps" and other outbreaks are evidences of neither 
mental incapacity nor moral degeneracy. They are 
rather the result of group consciousness in the absence 
of any legitimate group motive. If these organiza- 
tions can be furnished a proper school motive, they 
will serve two very useful purposes. The first of these 
is that they render unnecessary a multiplicity of organi- 
zations for carrying on the work of the school. In 
the smaller high schools the class organizations provide 
opportunity for carrying on nearly all the social activi- 
ties of the school. In the second place, they serve a 
very useful purpose as a means through which control 
of the school can be exercised. The class-room work 
can be utilized for standardizing both active mem- 



250 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Problem of 
direction 
and control 



High school 
dramatics 



bership in these groups and the social activities 
undertaken by them. 

The chief problem arising out of these social organiza- 
tions within the school is one of direction and control. 
They must be made to serve some useful school purpose 
and at the same time provide opportunity for freedom 
of initiative on the part of the students. The mode of 
standardization suggested in a preceding paragraph pro- 
vides opportunity for such initiative and still allows for 
proper direction and control on the part of school 
authorities. As illustrations of the nature of the diffi- 
culty incident to these organizations when not properly 
standardized, two typical cases will be cited. 

At the present time high school dramatics is a sort of 
fad, and in many schools gives rise to a serious problem. 
It is doubtful whether the practice of giving school 
plays is in any large degree justified, because of lack 
of proper standardization. The plays selected are 
not infrequently valueless from the standpoint of any 
function of the school, and the results are positively 
harmful to those who take part in their presentation. 
The general result is to interfere with the legitimate 
work of the school and nothing is gained to compen- 
sate for this loss. Interest in dramatic representation 
is a normal interest in the adolescent and is not diffi- 
cult to turn to good account. But in the absence of 
any educational aim or method, no result worth while 
can be expected. If the demand for utilizing this 
perfectly normal interest arises out of the demands of 
class-room work, criteria will be furnished both for 
selecting the plays used and for choosing those who 
participate in their presentation. 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 251 

The athletic situation in most high schools is far Athletic 
from satisfactory. It is no doubt true that the harm- activities 
ful influence of these organizations have been some- 
what lessened by scholarship standards which have 
been set up, conditioning membership in them. But 
it is doubtful whether very much has been accom- 
plished in the way of actually standardizing the work 
carried on. It is unusual to find any correlation be- 
tween athletic activities and the other work of the 
school. The reason for this is not difficult to find. 
There is no provision in the curriculum for physical 
education, and in the absence of this no other result 
than lack of correlation is possible. This condition is 
extremely unfortunate both because of the importance 
of physical education and because of lack of opportu- 
nity for proper standardization of athletic activities. 

There is no doubt good reason for continuing to a means 
require successful work in English, mathematics, and ^^g" 
the other subjects pursued as a condition for participa- thes e 

, , m, 1 activities 

tion in mter-school contests. There is, however, a 
much more valid reason for requiring certain standards 
of scholarship in those subjects making up the part 
of the curriculum which deals with physical education. 
This policy would result in putting things together 
which naturally belong together. The fuller recog- 
nition of the importance of physical education would 
thereby be promoted and athletic activities, particu- 
larly inter-class and inter-school contests, would be 
put upon a basis where control could be intelligently 
exercised. In most schools, no other organizations are 
so isolated as are athletic organizations and no others 
lack in the same degree points of contact with the 



252 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Student 
leadership 
as a means 
of control 



Functions 
performed 
by student 
leadership 



actual work of the school. This isolation is no doubt 
in part due to the fact that athletics in the high school 
came in as a result of college influence, at a time when 
the lower schools were not able to grapple in a con- 
structive way with the problem arising out of the 
forced situation. A continuation, however, of a lack 
of constructive policy is both undesirable and unneces- 
sary. Points of contact should be established so 
as to stimulate interest in physical education on the 
one hand, and on the other hand, to secure means of 
properly standardizing all organizations within the 
school whose purpose it is to control athletic activities. 

One of the essential things necessary to the success 
of these organizations is to secure the right kind of stu- 
dent leadership. Failure occurs at this point more fre- 
quently than at any other. Pupils who are in school 
largely because of interests in these activities, assume 
leadership to the detriment both of the organizations 
themselves and of the interests of the school as a whole. 
No one acquainted with the practical aspect of deal- 
ing with the problem of control will need to have the 
fact emphasized that competent student leadership 
is the fundamental necessity. As those acquainted 
with the situation know, effective control must for 
the most part be exercised through student leaders. 
Outside control, if efficient, results in hampering the 
activities and renders the organization useless for 
any school purpose. 

Not only is student leadership the most successful 
method of controlling these organizations, but it is 
the only means through which they can be made to 
function as educative agencies. These organizations 



TRAINING FOR SOCIAL EFFICIENCY 253 

— whether literary, athletic, or whatever else they 
may be — are fundamentally social in character and 
their chief purpose is to furnish opportunity for ex- 
perience in social affairs. In order to perform this 
function, the members of the group must take the 
initiative and must feel a sense of responsibility for 
the success of the undertaking. These things can 
be accomplished only through leadership within the 
group. Actual leadership must not be confused with 
the machinery of organization. Experience in matters 
of high school administration demonstrates that the 
most influential members of a group are frequently 
those who do not happen to hold office. The actual 
leaders, because of interest, initiative, and capability, 
are those who assume responsibility and give character 
to the organization. If they happen to constitute the 
officers of the club or society, well and good. But it 
is by no means necessary that they should. They 
mould public opinion and this, and not official ma- 
chinery, is the all-controlling factor. 

In the last analysis, the greatest values attaching Moral and 
to school organizations are moral and ethical ones. JJJj^ 
This fact should be the controlling factor in their 
management. This is true even of athletic organiza- 
tions. The fact that one is required to play in a com- 
plex situation and is held responsible for making his 
contribution to the success of a group undertaking, is 
a kind of experience not to be valued lightly. The 
situation calls for the exercise of self-control, the sub- 
mission to what at times appears to the individual to 
be an injustice in the enforcement of rules, and for 
submission to defeat, because of the superior skill 



254 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

of his opponents. No greater lesson can be learned 
in school than to play the game hard and fair without 
reference to the outcome. Other social activities give 
rise to moral and ethical situations in which young 
people receive a type of training, the value of which 
can scarcely be over-estimated. 



CHAPTER XXI 

THE SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND SCHOOL 
GOVERNMENT 

In the preceding chapters, school government has School gov- 
been under consideration. In any discussion of social antedated 
organization, we are dealing with the social aspect of problem 
the school and in consequence with problems of ad- 
ministration. School government is not to be thought 
of apart from the general considerations which have 
occupied our attention. Not only is it not separate 
from these, but the special problems arising out of the 
whole school situation which call for governmental 
control, can have no meaning if isolated. 

There is a sense, however, in which school govern- A real 
ment, discipline if you please, calls for special treat- non e the 
ment. Educational theorists frequently profess to less 
believe that these problems ought to be and can be 
eliminated. But practical people who have to deal 
with the situation in a concrete way, know that in 
our present state of educational endeavor we have not 
succeeded in ehminating some very real and at the 
same time very vexatious problems arising out of the 
general school situation. No amount of argument 
will convince one who is at work in the typical American 
high school that problems of discipline do not arise 
constantly, and that the manner of dealing successfully 



256 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Necessity 
for proper 
attitude 
toward 
problem 



Problem 
arises out 
of relation- 
ships within 
the school 



with these problems does not constitute one of the 
severe tests made up in the efficiency of teachers. It 
is to this class, who have to deal with the concrete 
situation as it actually exists, that this chapter will 
make its chief appeal. 

In dealing with the problem of high school govern- 
ment, it is necessary to take into account some of the 
fundamental things that give rise to the situation 
calling for administrative control. The problem of 
discipline is too often regarded as one which is thrust 
upon the school by untoward conditions that should 
not exist. Our tendency is to regard the situation as 
abnormal, and this is responsible for many of the 
serious difficulties arising within the school. We 
theorize a good deal about the duty of the teacher 
being to teach, and insist that discipline is no part of 
his work. We argue that the high school pupil should 
be able to adjust himself to the demands of the school, 
and that if he does not do so, the school is under no 
obligation to him. The result of all this is that we 
take the wrong attitude toward the whole situation 
and, as might be expected, confusion and undue fric- 
tion result. 

When we face the facts, however, and regard them 
in a rational way, it is evident that these conclusions 
are all wide of the truth. The problem of discipline 
is a necessary one, arising out of the employments 
of the school. A group of people, just because of the 
relationship that the members sustain one to another, 
give rise to problems of social control. No one expects, 
for example, that any group of adults can successfully 
carry on any activity in the absence of regulations 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 257 

and of some properly constituted authority for enforc- 
ing these in the interest of those concerned in the 
undertaking. Problems of social control always arise 
out of any social situation. In spite of this, however, 
the tendency is to regard the problem of discipline 
in the high schools as an extraneous one and that, by 
some hook or crook, it can be eliminated. This atti- 
tude results too frequently in the lack of a policy of 
government in harmony with the nature and purpose 
of the school. 

It is essential to recognize the necessity for a policy Problem a 
in the government of a school. In the high school, an 2e^^ 
educational policy as related to government is impera- ^ek school 
tive because we are dealing with adolescents. It is 
perhaps true of this period in greater degree than of 
any other period of life, that the most insistent prob- 
lem of the individual is one of making readjustments 
to social situations. The technique which the adoles- 
cent has built up for social control is largely inadequate 
for his present needs. The modes of adjustment which 
he has found entirely adequate up to this time are not 
only not useful, but they are actually hindrances in 
meeting present demands. It is a situation in which 
habits do not function properly and in which other 
habits have not been worked out adequately to meet 
the new demands. The teacher is frequently impatient 
with the boy because some of these old habits do func- 
tion when the demands of the situation call for another 
type of conduct. What the teacher fails to realize, 
however, is that the adolescent is engaged in the break- 
ing of old habits by the formation of new ones, and 
that it is the duty of the school to assist him in this 



258 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Control 
necessary 
in order 
that work 
may be 
carried on 



process. It is the breaking of old habits and the 
formation of new ones, or at least greatly modified 
ones, which gives rise to the situation in the high 
school, making the problem of discipline a peculiarly 
difficult one. 

School administrators are dealing with a concrete 
situation in which is found a class of individuals sus- 
taining peculiar social relationships. There are prac- 
tical difficulties arising in connection with the attempt 
to sustain these relationships, and it is these difficul- 
ties that give rise to the problem of government. The 
most immediate fact in this connection is, that control 
has to be exercised in order that the work of the school 
may be carried on. Regulations, both negative and 
positive, are required to meet the demands for orderly 
procedure in the employments of the school. Properly 
constituted authority must at times restrain from 
activity, and at other times compel to activity, in order 
that the school may perform its rightful function. 
This is one point of view from which school govern- 
ment must be regarded. Order is the first law of the 
school, and orderly procedure must in some way be 
secured. If this cannot be accomplished in the best 
way, then some other method must be employed. 
Inexperienced teachers are frequently inclined to 
theorize about how things ought to be when the situa- 
tion calls for action dealing with things as they actually 
are. Order must be secured and maintained even at 
the expense, sometimes, of the use of methods having 
doubtful pedagogical justification. 

This important and necessary function of school 
government is, however, frequently defeated by being 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 259 

held too conspicuously before the minds of teachers Not a police 
and pupils. The problem of government is not a educational 
police problem. It is, on the contrary, a most vital problem 
and insistent educational problem and must be dealt 
with as such. School government has to do primarily 
with a system of ethical relationships through which 
the young people ought to learn some of the most 
important lessons which the school can teach them. 
As pointed out above, occasional situations may call 
for the use of methods lacking pedagogical warrant. 
But any governmental policy that regards these 
methods as any other than extreme measures to meet 
exceptional situations, utterly fails. Methods of con- 
trol and methods of teaching are, in the last analysis, 
subjected to the same educational tests. They both 
deal with learners and are only one side of a process of 
which learning is the other side. 

The right attitude toward authority, respect for Mere con- 
the rights of others, and the development of a sense oniyfunc- 
of social responsibility, are matters concerning which *°*°\ 
lessons have to be learned through actual experiences government 
in social relationships. These things cannot be taught 
categorically and by word of mouth. Any of us who 
have in reality an intelligent attitude toward authority, 
have developed this attitude through experiences in 
consequence of which we have found out its real sig- 
nificance. Our respect for others has not been de- 
veloped through any abstract conception of rights 
and duties, but rather through experiences which have 
taught us how intimately our own welfare is bound 
up with the welfare of others. A keen sense of so- 
cial responsibility has been developed, not primarily 



260 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Adolescent 
characteris- 
tics in 
relation to 
school gov- 
ernment 



through intellectual apprehension of high ideals and 
the making of noble resolves, but rather has it 
come through experiences in which we have been 
compelled to evaluate conduct in terms of its social 
consequences. The adolescent is called upon to make 
quite radical readjustments in his ethical relationships 
and is able to make them only in the midst of a situa- 
tion where the actual stress and strain of life is put 
upon him. 

Teachers and parents who really understand the 
significance of the great changes taking place in the 
transition from childhood to youth, never make the 
mistake of assuming that young people are lawless. 
On the contrary, they know that in no period of 
life is the respect for law greater, or the proper 
attitude toward authority more pronounced than it is 
during the earlier years of adolescence. That which 
distinguishes this period, however, from the one which 
precedes it, is the kind of law that is binding and the 
type of authority to which submission is readily ren- 
dered. It is true that the "thus saith I" kind of law 
is lightly regarded and the authority which promul- 
gates and attempts to enforce the law is little respected. 
The youth respects in very high degree any sort of 
social regulation which appeals to him as necessary 
and just, and he has equal respect for the authority 
which enforces this kind of law, even though he be 
penalized in its enforcement. He has high regard 
for the rights of others, revealed in the concrete 
social relationships sustained in the group of which 
he is a member. For abstractions he has little 
interest and even less respect. He is sensitive, even 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 261 

morbidly so, concerning the matter of meeting his 
social obligations when he comes to feel that the de- 
mand growing out of concrete relationships consti- 
tutes an obligation resting upon him. He prefers to 
be misunderstood, to be punished, to be expelled 
from school even, rather than to fail to meet what 
he regards to be his obligations to his fellows. The 
sense of social responsibility is never more keen or 
more compelling than during the adolescent period. 

There is no adolescent need more outstanding and Moral and 
more commanding than the need of sympathetic direc- l^l 
tion in the formulation of criteria of judgment and in 
the working out of a technique in making adjustments 
to and in securing control over social environment. 
Any system or form or ideal of school government 
which fails to provide such sympathetic direction fails 
to perform its most important function. Educational 
aims and means and methods should control here as 
elsewhere in the school. Order must be secured and 
maintained, but order is not an end in itself. The 
final test of the efficiency of any system of government 
is found in the permanent moral and ethical influences 
it exerts. The vital question is not how orderly is 
procedure in the school, but rather what are the moral 
and ethical experiences resulting from its system of 
control. For example, if serious difficulty in the mat- 
ter of control arises in any considerable degree in the 
upper classes of the school, it is perfectly evident that 
school government has not performed its chief function. 
One of the best evidences that school govermnent is 
functioning properly is the fact that the pupils require 
less and less the exercise of its police power. 



262 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Policy of 
government 
must be 
suitable 



Military or 

autocratic 

form 



In determining the form of school government, it 
is necessary to keep in mind the moral and ethical aim 
already indicated. Further than this, the suitability 
of any form of government as related to the interests 
and capability of high school students must receive 
attention. Any policy of government inconsistent 
with this aim or which because of its character is 
not suitable for high school purposes, will have to 
be rejected. Some of the so-called systems of govern- 
ment advocated for use in the high school are borrowed 
forms and that fact alone should make us suspicious 
of them. The form of government, whatever it may 
be in name, must be determined by the nature of the 
employments of the school and the needs of those 
being educated. 

The military or autocratic form of government should 
theoretically require no discussion, because in name 
it was long ago abandoned. The spirit of it, how- 
ever, whatever fleshly form it may take, still abides. 
We call things by different names, but in fact the old 
spirit continues in many schools to dominate govern- 
mental policies. The "thus saith I" form of govern- 
ment never works, simply because the spirit of it is 
out of harmony with the needs and sympathies of 
young people. Yielding to this type of authority on 
the part of adolescents, is more often an evidence of 
arrested development than it is a sign of angelic dis- 
position. In a democracy where we are attempting 
to train for intelligent citizenship, there is no valid 
defense that can be made for this type of school gov- 
ernment. There is but one excuse even that can 
be offered for it, and that is the weakness and gen- 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 263 

eral incompetency of high school administrators and 
teachers. A despotism is neither a credit to those 
who are responsible for its maintenance, nor an 
agency that can serve any useful purpose in training 
for citizenship in a social democracy. 

A form of government which has flourished more Pupil 
or less in recent years and the superiority of which has 
been declared with a good deal of assurance, is called 
self-government, or more properly pupil-government. 
The chief source of pride of those who are sponsors for 
the harmful delusion that pupils are capable of setting 
up and maintaining an elaborate governmental system, 
is in its complicated machinery. Like any other com- 
plicated system, so much attention being given to the 
task of operating it, results in an emphasis upon the 
form, to the neglect of proper consideration of the edu- 
cative function which school government ought to 
perform. There are two criticisms to be made upon 
this particular type of social control. The first is 
that the form, which is political in its nature, is un- 
suited to the nature of the governmental problem in 
the school. Nothing is gained in the way of develop- 
ing self-control by substituting some pupil or group 
of pupils for the teacher, in a place of authority. The 
exercise of police power is just as subversive to the 
real aim of school government, regardless of who exer- 
cises it. The spying system, through marshals or 
monitors or by whatever name these officials are desig- 
nated, constitutes a form of government out of place 
in any school seeking to secure an increasing power of 
self-control. The second objection to the system is 
that it does not work. If orderly procedure is secured 



government 



264 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Meaning of 
self-govern- 
ment in the 
school 



Policy of 
government 
not form 
the essential 
thing 



and if the system succeeds in maintaining itself for 
any considerable time, it is because of the dominat- 
ing personality of the principal or some teacher who 
succeeds in spite of the system rather than because 
of it. The defects in the system are so apparent and 
the failures so numerous that it seems there are no 
valid grounds upon which it can be defended. 

Self-government, using the term in its proper sense, 
should have a large place in any scheme of govern- 
ment, and pupils who are exercising self-control should 
be found in increasingly large numbers as they pass 
through the high school. But that any definite body 
of pupils at any time should constitute the governors 
and that the larger body, on the other hand, should 
constitute the governed, should not necessarily follow. 
At the outset of the discussion it was insisted that 
the problem of government is essentially an educa- 
tional one. The relationship of teacher and pupil is 
no different here from what it is in any other school 
situation. The pupil is a learner in matters relating to 
conduct, and the teacher is the director and the super- 
visor in the learning process. There are certain types 
of social organizations that are essential in performing 
governmental functions, but the purpose of these 
organizations is to put at the command of the teacher 
the means of realizing certain definite educational 
aims. Pedagogical principles must govern here as 
elsewhere in the school. 

The particular form of school government is of 
itself not important. The significant things are a 
definite governmental policy which is in accord with 
the purposes of the school, and the choice of means that 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 265 

are best adapted under all the circumstances to carry- 
ing out the policy. The purpose of school government 
is not only to keep order, but also to accomplish certain 
educational ends. The limitations in experience on 
the part of pupils must be taken into account, or these 
ends will not be realized. The real test of the efficiency 
of the governmental machinery is whether it is increas- 
ingly efficient as a means of education in and of itself. 
If this test is successfully met, government becomes 
less and less necessary as a means of securing favorable 
conditions under which the regular work of the school 
can be successfully carried on. Education, and not 
order in the school, is the final test of school government. 
The first essential of a successful policy of school Polic y 

/. , should 

government is that it enlists the sympathies and co- enlist 
operation of the pupils themselves. Any policy which ^^J hy 
does not do this in a considerable degree is a wrong operation 
policy, and the greater degree in which it does enlist 
the sympathies and secure cooperation, the more 
successful will it be in actual operation. There are 
various schemes, so-called policies, which because of 
their novelty may attract for a time, but cannot be 
relied upon for anything like permanent achievement. 
As soon as the novelty wears off and participation on 
the part of the pupils ceases to be a fad and a fash- 
ion, the schemes fail. Not novelty but pedagogical 
soundness must be relied upon to secure permanent 
cooperation. 
The actual condition of lack of sympathy and of Expression 

i r • °* group 

cooperation on the part of the students, is frequently conscious- 
revealed by the refusal to give information concern- n ^ t s ° f nthe 
ing the perpetrators of offenses against the good order pupils 



266 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Permanent 
interests of 
pupil attach 
not to form 
of govern- 
ment but to 
activities 



of the school. This expression of group consciousness 
is not an indication of abnormality. On the contrary, 
it is perfectly normal and highly commendable. It 
is an evidence that social responsibility is beginning 
to be keenly felt, and that moral and ethical standards, 
in terms of group relationships, are controlling con- 
duct. The unfortunate thing is that these standards 
frequently function in the wrong way and serve un- 
worthy ends. This spirit of loyalty to ethical ideals 
and to a sense of social obligation, should be made to 
function in the right way and be utilized both in the 
interests of the pupils themselves and for the creation 
of a proper school spirit. This loyalty on the part 
of the pupil to what he conceives to be a binding social 
obligation and which renders school government dif- 
ficult, is the very thing, properly utilized, that can be 
transformed into a most effective means of social 
control. Loyalty to the school consists in loyalty to 
these same ethical standards. The problem is to 
secure the proper functioning of these standards 
through the attachment of this loyalty to the larger 
and more permanent school interests. 

The seeking of cooperation directly in matters of 
government is not the best means for securing this 
attachment through which alone proper school spirit 
may be developed. The interest of pupils may be 
enlisted temporarily in a scheme of school government. 
But permanent interests attach only to those per- 
manent activities which the working groups within 
the school are actually carrying on. The importance 
of these activities should be kept constantly in the 
foreground, and the appeal made for cooperation in 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 267 

securing conditions under which they can most success- 
fully be promoted. This puts the matter of govern- 
ment in its right relation in the minds of the pupils, 
and secures by indirect means genuine and permanent 
cooperation. 

An illustration will be used here to render more con- An uiustra- 
crete what has been said in the preceding paragraphs. on 
Two high schools in neighboring towns recently en- 
gaged in an athletic contest. Some of the pupils 
from the visiting school conducted themselves in a 
reprehensible manner. The game was played in the 
late afternoon and the visitors did not depart for home 
until evening. On the next morning, there appeared at 
the school where the game was played one of the older 
boys of the visiting school, asking permission to make 
a statement on behalf of his school. In effect, he 
wished to say that the pupils who made the disturb- 
ance misrepresented the spirit and the character of his 
school. He stated that they were being properly 
dealt with by the school authorities. He wished on 
behalf of his school to offer an apology for their conduct 
and to obligate the school to prevent the repetition of 
such an occurrence in the future. 

Back of the novelty in the mode of procedure indi- Meaning of 
cated above is the fact of a spirit of cooperation in 
the school which sought to reestablish friendly rela- 
tions. In the first place, it is evident that the refrac- 
tory visitors were reported upon by their fellows. This 
was an evidence of the existence of a true school spirit. 
The attachment of loyalty was to the interests of the 
school represented on that particular occasion by the 
members of the athletic group engaged in the inter- 



268 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

school contest. Cooperation was not primarily in 
the matter of government but in an undertaking which 
had been interfered with by certain members of the 
school. What sort of punishment was administered 
to the offenders it is not important to know. It is 
known, however, that there was no elaborate ma- 
chinery of pupil-government in that school, and that 
no new or novel method of dealing with offenders was 
in vogue. The important thing is, that a type of 
public opinion prevailed in the school which rendered 
it self-governing in the true sense of the term. There 
was a true spirit of cooperation between teacher and 
pupils and among pupils themselves and a loyalty to 
standards of conduct within the school which rendered 
the problem of dealing with offenders comparatively 
a simple one. 

The essential thing in school government is not to 
provide elaborate machinery for dealing with offend- 
ers, but rather to secure such conditions as will in 
large measure eliminate offenses. There will be viola- 
tions of regulations even in the best ordered schools, 
and well defined policies are necessary for dealing with 
offenders. But to the pupils themselves, it is the 
matter of conduct in these concrete relationships to 
which we have referred that is of chief concern. It is 
not a civic problem at all, but rather a moral and 
ethical one. If we were to select the words most often 
used by pupils in connection with the matter of 
school government, we should find the words "fair," 
"just," "right," "wrong," and like terms predominat- 
ing. Unless suggested to them, little concern is mani- 
fested in the form of government, while emphasis is 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 269 

continually laid upon its spirit. It is the spirit of 
government, not its form, that must be relied upon for 
eliminating offenses. 

The only way, however, in which to secure proper Expression 
school spirit is to provide means for its expression spM? 001 
in the social organizations through which the work of through 
the school is actually being carried on. The machinery izations^^" 
of these organizations constituted by the pupils them- 
selves is necessary, but like the framework of a build- 
ing, it serves its purpose best when obscured. The 
motives of the group and the activities which give 
these motives objective reality are the things in which 
pupils are interested, and for this reason must receive 
the emphasis. One of the reasons why pupils resent 
government by the teachers is because the machinery 
is too apparent. Obscure the machinery by putting 
in the foreground group interests as a reason for regula- 
tion and give opportunity for group activities which 
provide opportunity for the expression of school spirit, 
and the resentment largely disappears. 

The assertion that high school pupils obey willingly Attitude of 
only those rules and regulations which they make and ^ward 
enforce through a system of elaborate machinery, is teacher- 

n t «iit. made rules 

put to a rather severe test when we consider athletic 
organizations. Nowhere within the whole range of 
school organizations do pupils have so little to do with 
making rules, and nowhere do they obey rules more 
implicitly. The reason for obedience is not in the 
source of the rules, but in the fact that they are nec- 
essary for carrying on the game successfully. The rea- 
sonableness of the rules in relation to the demands 
of the situation is the compelling factor. So it is in 



270 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The problem 
of dealing 
with 
offenders 



The classes 
of offenders 



the other groups of the school and the school as a 
whole. No doubt many teacher-made rules are pro- 
ductive of anarchy within the school. But this result 
follows not so much because they are teacher-made 
as because they have no justification revealed to the 
pupils by the actual concrete demands of the situation. 

In spite, however, of the emphasis which has been 
rightfully placed upon the necessity of policy in govern- 
ment which seeks to eliminate offenses, the problem 
of dealing with offenders is a persistent one and should 
not be lightly regarded. In fact, the method of 
dealing with offenders has much to do not only with 
determining the attitude of pupils toward government 
in the school, but with the spirit which prevails in the 
school as a whole. It is quite natural to classify 
offenses against the order of the school, and this is too 
frequently done to the neglect of classifying offenders. 
An analysis of conditions as they actually exist in 
every school, reveals that three more or less well- 
defined classes have to be taken into account. The 
relative number in each of these classes differs in 
different schools and in the same school at different 
times. But the recognition of the existence of each 
class is important. 

First, we have those pupils who do not know what 
the rules are that govern conduct in the various school 
relations. This class is relatively small in a school 
where the policy is to lay down and publish, verbally 
or otherwise, an extended code of rules governing all 
sorts of possible situations. On the other hand, where 
the policy of the school is to encourage pupils to dis- 
cover for themselves by a study of the situation pre- 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 271 

sented proper rules to govern, the number in this 
class will be larger and composed of the younger mem- 
bers of the school. The second class is composed of 
those who know what the regulations are but fail to 
appreciate their significance. Lack of interest in the 
activity interfered with and lack of experience in 
evaluating conduct account for this class. The third 
class is constituted by those who willfully and ma- 
liciously violate the regulations of the school. This 
class is always relatively small and usually quite harm- 
less where the right sort of school spirit prevails. For 
these reasons, if there were no others, there is no 
justification for making this class the basis for deter- 
mining a method of dealing with all offenders. 

The foregoing analysis reveals the psychological Psychology 

csJ. cii3.r3.ctGr 

character of the problem with which we have to deal. fthe 
Method to be effective must take into account the P roblem 
offender himself and also all others who are in any way 
connected with the school situation out of which the 
offense has arisen. Viewed from any standpoint, the 
justification of any method is found only in its edu- 
cative value. The great lesson which the adolescent 
has to learn is that freedom is positive, not nega- 
tive, that it is not conferred but achieved, and that 
it can be achieved only by assuming those obliga- 
tions which naturally grow out of the social situation 
of which he is a part. When he fails in discharging 
these obligations, any method of dealing with him 
which shifts the responsibility to teachers or other 
pupils, deprives him of valuable experience which he 
would gain through an opportunity to solve his own 
problem in so far as he may be able to do so. 



272 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



The 

responsi- 
bility must 
be placed 
on the 
offender 



Practical 
workings of 
this policy 



The situation viewed from the standpoint of both 
the individual and the group, demands that the re- 
sponsibility be placed back upon the one who is respon- 
sible for interfering with the good order of the school. 
When an offense has been committed, the first ques- 
tion that should arise in the minds of everyone con- 
cerned is, What is the offender himself going to do 
about it? He should be made the center of the whole 
ethical situation, both for purposes of his own educa- 
tion and for the influence that such a mode of pro- 
cedure would have upon others. When this method 
is accepted by the school, offenses decrease with 
the increase of the experience of pupils, and offenders 
cease to be either heroes or martyrs. 

In actual practice, it will no doubt sometimes happen 
that pupils will either refuse to accept the responsi- 
bility or fail to devise means by which they can restore 
themselves to their former relationship with the group. 
Teachers and other pupils may have to be called in 
council to help decide the issue. But the employment 
of this method demonstrates that pupils in general 
readily accept it as "fair," "just," "right," and use it 
with a high degree of success. Through the use of 
this method the emphasis is placed upon the individ- 
ual's responsibility to the group, and not upon the 
machinery which the group may be compelled to set 
up in order to carry on its activities. The method is 
sound psychologically because the adolescent does feel 
responsible primarily to the group as such. On the 
social side, no other method is as effective in training 
young people in recognizing social obligations, and in 
securing right attitudes toward meeting these obliga- 



SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 273 

tions. The adolescent is more or less unconsciously 
endeavoring to discover these obligations and to re- 
spond to their demands. The school can render him 
no higher service than to aid him in making this 
endeavor conscious and intelligent. 



CHAPTER XXII 
MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 



Inadequate 
equipment 
limits work 
of the 
school 



True as 
regards 
textbooks 
as well 



One of the objections which will no doubt be offered 
to the plans suggested in our discussion of the social 
organization of the school, is that in the average com- 
munity these plans could not be carried out. This 
objection has some validity and is supported by con- 
ditions actually prevailing. Buildings are not suit- 
able and grounds are inadequate, and these facts have 
to be taken into account in considering the actual 
problems involved in administration. Until very re- 
cently school architecture has not taken into account 
the social interests and needs of young people, and 
the movement is quite as recent toward the recog- 
nition of the importance of securing adequate school 
grounds. We have no better objective evidence of old 
educational ideals than the school houses found in 
many communities. The old ideals assumed that the 
only function of the school house was to provide a 
place for the pupils to study and recite their lessons. 
The social aspect of education was not included in the 
ideals, and in consequence it was not taken into con- 
sideration in the architecture of school buildings. 

Insufficiency of equipment is not confined, however, 
to school buildings and school grounds. An objec- 
tion may be made with equal force to the practicability 
of our suggestions concerning the intellectual organiza- 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 275 

tion of the school. Textbooks for the most part, both 
from the standpoint of the type of material included 
and its organization as well, will not be found to be 
in accord in any large degree with the criteria which 
we have set up for the selection and organization of 
material. Some very decided improvements are being 
made in the character of textbooks at the present time 
and yet there is much that remains to be done. The 
disciplinary conception of education has so thor- 
oughly controlled all of our educational practices that 
textbooks as well as school buildings are objective 
evidences of the commanding influence of this ideal. 

The fact that educational ideals thus find expres- New edu- 
sion in the material equipment of the school, makes it ^eds must 
evident that the restatements of educational aims now ^d expres- 
going on must result in radical changes in matters equipment 
of equipment if the new ideals function in any large 
way in educational practice. The primary question 
before us is not whether textbooks or buildings or other 
forms of equipment are suitable for our purposes. The 
vital question is whether our contentions with reference 
to the intellectual and social organization of the school 
are valid. If they are, then equipment of every sort 
must be made to conform to the aims and ideals. In 
actual practice, it will be found that much can be 
accomplished in the way of realizing these new aims 
and ideals even under present unsatisfactory condi- 
tions. One of the reasons why practice in our schools 
has not kept pace with educational theory is because 
we have put too much emphasis upon lack of equip- 
ment and have not put forth enough effort in using 
the equipment at our command. The first step 



276 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

toward securing the sort of equipment necessary to 
render our work the most efficient is to make intelli- 
gent and persistent use of the equipment already at 
our command. The fact that equipment is inade- 
quate is frequently obscured by the other fact that it 
is either not used or is misused. 
Buildings One of the criticisms that can be made upon almost 

enougif 6 any building used for high school purposes is that it 
is not large enough. When one inspects a high school 
building, having in mind the characteristics of high 
school pupils, one is impressed with the fact that every 
part of the building is constructed on too small a scale. 
Entrances and exits are inadequate in size, halls and 
stairways are too narrow, cloakrooms are overcrowded, 
recitation rooms and laboratories are too small, and 
sometimes nothing in the way of anything like an 
adequate assembly room is provided. Buildings are 
not constructed on the proper plan, but much would 
be gained even if we continue to construct them 
on the same plan, if they were made much larger. 
No adequate provision is made for movement except 
within the most restricted limits. If any standards 
at all are used in determining the amount of room 
needed for carrying on the work of the school, it appears 
that they have taken into account only the needs of 
the school when the pupils are sitting or standing. 
Movement is possible only when controlled by single 
file, lock-step rules. It would not be far out of the 
way to say that if the ground dimensions of every 
school house were multiplied by two, no more room 
would be afforded than is required by the nature and 
employments of the school. 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 277 

The second fact to be taken into account, if ade- Not properly 
quate room is available, is its proper distribution in P lanned 
order that each employment of the school may be 
carried on under reasonably favorable conditions. 
Since our ideal of secondary education has changed, 
means and methods must change in order that the 
ideal may be realized. This calls for a new type of 
school architecture which provides facilities for the 
employment of new means and methods. For example, 
in theory at least, we place great emphasis upon the 
use of the library, but in spite of this, it is a rare thing 
to find a suitable room even in our modern school build- 
ings for carrying on library work. Library facilities 
are by no means measured alone by the amount and 
character of the material provided. It is necessary, 
of course, to have a place where this material can be 
kept and properly cared for. This provision, how- 
ever, is only a beginning. The essential thing is to 
provide a place where this material can be used to the 
best advantage and which will serve as a stimulus to 
its use to the fullest possible extent. As a general 
thing, either no room is provided for library work, or 
if one is provided, it is a little stuffy affair, inade- 
quately lighted and ventilated, and wholly unsuited 
for the purposes of its intended use. 

Some of the lines of work recently introduced into Much work 
the high school are being carried on under such un- J^ don 
favorable conditions, that nothing except the most under 
meager results can rightfully be expected. As a conditions 
general proposition it is safe to say that no school 
should undertake to teach manual training, domestic 
science, or agriculture, in case the building was erected 



278 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

before these subjects were introduced into the curric- 
ulum, unless the building has been remodeled. And 
in many instances the attempts to remodel have not 
resulted in providing adequate room facilities. The 
practice much in vogue of using the basement of the 
school building for work in these lines is indefensible. 
The basement is usually a room with a low ceiling, 
damp and foul-smelling, poorly lighted, with scarcely 
any ventilation at all, and is fit only as a store room 
for coal or junk. The zeal for progress in a community 
too frequently far outruns good judgment. And this 
is one of the instances in which good judgment has 
lagged far behind. 
Need of In addition to the enlargement and proper distribu- 

fcSties ti° n of room in a building, there yet remains to be 
considered the necessity for facilities not usually pro- 
vided at all. In this day a school building which does 
not contain a gymnasium adequate to the needs of the 
school, ought to be regarded quite as incomplete as a 
building would be if it provided no place for laboratory 
work in science. It is true that the larger towns and 
cities are almost universally providing gymnasium 
facilities in the buildings now being erected. But 
because of this we must not conclude that the prac- 
tice is by any means general. The fact is that in many 
of the buildings constructed even within the last 
decade, no such provision is made. In answer to the 
demand for gymnasium facilities, the argument is fre- 
quently used that the boys and girls in the small towns 
and rural communities have sufficient opportunity 
for exercise outside the school. In reply, it needs to 
be said that exercise properly directed and controlled 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 279 

is one of the essentials of physical education and that 
the gymnasium is a necessary means for providing 
such direction and control. From this point of view, 
it makes no difference whether the school house is 
situated in a city, a small town, or even in a rural com- 
munity, a gymnasium is necessary to its completeness. 
What has been said in a general way in reference to 
the crowded conditions of the school building, applies 
with particular force to the gymnasium. It should 
be large, well-lighted, well-ventilated, and adequately 
equipped. 

Throughout our discussion of the social organization The school 
of the school it was implied that the school should rdatio^fto 
constitute the social center for the young people of its ? se as a 

SOC1S.1 CQHt.BT 

the community. In accordance with this conception, 
the school building will have to be constructed with 
reference to these larger demands made upon it. 
Special rooms should be provided which are free from 
desks, blackboards, and other accessories of the class- 
room. These should be fitted up with special refer- 
ence to the kind of activities which will be carried on. 
There is nothing to be gained by talking about the 
importance of the school directing the social activities 
of the pupils, in the absence of some sort of provision 
making such direction possible. When a group of 
pupils desire to have a social function, it should be 
possible for them to find at the school building the 
most convenient place for meeting. This is not only 
the most economical but also the most effective way 
in which the community can provide for a sane and 
helpful type of social life for its young people. Facili- 
ties of this sort are not yet provided. And the surest 



280 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Inadequate 
grounds 



An Illustra- 
tion 



way of securing such provision, is for the teachers to 
encourage the pupils to use the school building up to 
the full limit of its possibilities as a place for car- 
rying on their social activities. When a building is 
thus put to a practical test and is found wanting, no 
community will hesitate long to provide the facilities 
needed. 

A building adequate in size and properly arranged, 
must be supplemented by grounds sufficient to allow 
the school to perform its rightful function. In no 
single respect have school authorities been so short- 
sighted as in the matter of providing adequate grounds. 
In the great majority of communities, they have appar- 
ently been oblivious to the large contribution which 
adequate grounds properly used may make in the 
education of their children. The reason for this is 
not far to seek. The old conception of the school 
merely as a place where children prepare and recite 
their lessons, has exerted the same influence in the 
matter of school grounds as it has had upon our school 
architecture. 

As an illustration of the difference between the old 
conception of the school and the new, the following 
example serves a good purpose. In a certain large 
town there was recently erected at great expense a 
magnificent high school building for the accommo- 
dation of about eight hundred pupils. The building 
itself occupies approximately one-half of the ground 
owned by the district. For all practical purposes, 
it would be just as well if the building occupied the 
whole tract, because the tract unoccupied is so small 
in comparison to the needs of the school that it has 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 281 

but little value. A few years before this building was 
erected, a high school building was put up in a neigh- 
boring town to accommodate less than four hundred 
high school pupils. This building, however, was 
erected upon a tract of land containing about four 
acres. And later the citizens, by public subscription, 
purchased at a cost of several thousand dollars an 
additional four acres and presented it to the district. 
The advantages resulting to this community can 
scarcely be over-estimated. 

The causes leading up to this action on the part of Advantages 

rm • °* adequate 

enterprising citizens are worthy of mention. This grounds 
community had taken a good deal of pride in the care 
and maintenance of its school grounds, and so success- 
ful were they that the grounds were the most beautiful 
and the best kept in the whole town. Some of the 
more thoughtful people, however, saw that this policy 
was of doubtful value. They perceived that the chil- 
dren were being deprived of the use of the grounds 
for play and outdoor sports. Flower beds and shrub- 
bery and full-blooded youth at play do not make a 
good combination. Apparently it was either no beauty 
spot or no playground. But a few of the leaders of 
the community did not purpose to choose between 
these alternatives. They insisted that their school 
grounds should continue to be a place of beauty and 
also that the children should have an opportunity to 
play. Out of this extremely wise and pedagogical 
conclusion resulted the purchase of the additional 
acres which could be devoted to recreation purposes 
without let or hindrance. The youth of this com- 
munity have the double advantage in carrying on 



282 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

their work in the midst of a beautiful environment 
and at the same time have adequate outdoor facilities 
for employing their leisure time. These highly desir- 
able conditions under which this particular school 
carries on its work, are possible for any community 
which has sufficient enterprise to go and do likewise. 
Larger use In planning buildings and grounds, it needs to be 
premises kept in mind that provision should be made for the 
use of school premises in a much larger way than they 
are now employed. The outstanding need of the 
average community is that the school provide a suit- 
able place where the young people may gather in the 
evenings and on Saturdays for purposes of recreation 
and other useful modes of employment. The asser- 
tion that the pupils' time outside of the conventional 
school hours is fully occupied is not warranted by the 
facts. Whether pupils of high school age should be so 
occupied is not the question. The fact is they are not 
so occupied as regards the great majority of individuals 
in the average community. A large part of their 
time outside of school hours is employed in some form 
of leisure occupation, and the school should undertake 
to provide for the direction and control of these ac- 
tivities. Equipment as regards buildings and grounds, 
which contemplates nothing beyond two hundred, or 
less, school days of five and one-half hours each, fails 
to meet the demands of the situation. It has already 
been pointed out that the home is not organized to 
take care of the needs and interests of youth and that 
no institution other than the school, can perform this 
function in any satisfactory way. It is futile, how- 
ever, to expect the school to perform this highly im- 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 283 

portant function in the absence of adequate material 
equipment. 

Not only does the efficiency of the school on the side The in- 
of its social activities depend upon the character and o^eqrip^ 
extent of its equipment, but this is equally true in men t 
large measure also in regard to its intellectual pursuits. 
Theoretically, perhaps, this fact needs no attention. 
But on the practical side, no need is greater than em- 
phasis upon the necessity for better material equip- 
ment. One often hears the remark that a good teacher 
can succeed in spite of poor equipment and that a 
poor teacher would fail no matter how good the equip- 
ment may be. The more truthful statement is that 
success to a good teacher is assured and a stimulus 
to a poor teacher to become a better one is furnished, 
if suitable equipment is provided. Both the worker 
and the tools must be reckoned with if expectations for 
good results are to be realized. 

An important thing now demanding our attention, Textbooks 
is the need of textbooks which will more fully em- Radical 
body the standpoints discussed in the chapters dealing revision 
with the intellectual organization of the school. A 
suitable textbook serving as guide in the work is a 
great aid, if not indeed absolutely essential to success 
in teaching most of the subjects offered in the high 
school. Various schemes and makeshifts have been 
resorted to in recent years, to make up for deficiencies 
in textbooks, but for the most part these endeavors 
have ended in failure. In spite of these efforts, the 
textbook has continued to furnish the emphasis as 
regards material and to determine in large measure 
the character of its organization. Our educational 



284 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Two general 

classes 

considered 



Need .of 
supplemen- 
tary 
material 



theories in general have far outrun our practical en- 
deavors, and one of the evidences of this is the 
character of some of the textbooks still in use. Those 
who use textbooks as tools in instruction have had 
too little influence up to the present time in deter- 
mining their character. One of the most effective ways 
in which needed changes in content and method of 
organization can be secured, is for school adminis- 
trators and teachers to make known their needs, in a 
constructive way, to textbook makers and publishers. 

Two general classes of textbooks come in for crit- 
icism. Those books which deal with the old types of 
subject matter are survivals representing old educa- 
tional ideals, and the new social demands being made 
upon the school render it necessary to displace them 
by the use of other books embodying the newer edu- 
cational ideals. The most of the textbooks used in the 
material and social sciences may be cited as examples. 
A mere revision of some of these books will not accom- 
plish much for the simple reason that the most of their 
content is inferior in value to other content that 
might be selected. A revision in fact would have to 
amount in some cases to a new book. The other class 
of textbooks referred to is that dealing with the newer 
subjects introduced into the schools. The content of 
some of these books is very well chosen, but the organi- 
zation of the material does not meet the requirements. 
They need to be rewritten and in some cases new 
emphases employed. 

Textbooks, however, even if material is wisely chosen 
and has proper psychological organization, in most of 
the fields covered by high school instruction, serve at 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 285 

best only as guides to point out the way. A large 
amount of supplementary material is needed, and the 
choice of this material needs more discriminating atten- 
tion than it usually receives. A high school without 
a properly equipped library suffers a handicap impos- The library 
sible to overcome. An investigation recently made 
covering a large number of high schools in the Middle 
West, revealed that the average high school is suffering 
from such handicap. In the first place, appropria- 
tions were so niggardly that the amount of material 
which it was possible to secure was totally inadequate 
to the needs of the school. In the second place, in 
many instances the material at the command of the 
school was in large measure not suitable to its most 
insistent needs. One of the evidences of this was 
the fact that much of the material was never used. 
It is true that this condition may be due in part to the 
lack of knowledge on the part of teachers as to how to 
use it. But making due allowance for this, any sort 
of critical examination of the material makes clear that 
it is not of the right sort. A third fact revealed by 
this investigation, is that many schools have no suit- 
able place provided in which to keep supplementary 
material and no facilities afforded for its fruitful use. 

The material necessary to supplement textbook work Two general 
may be roughly divided into two general classes. In material 
the first class may be included all material designated 
as reference works. Dictionaries, atlases, maps, and 
reference books dealing in an intensive way with 
special topics, constitute the class under discussion. 
This sort of material is useful for rendering the class- 
room work more concrete, and for appealing to a wide 



286 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Importance 
of selection 
of material 



The high 
school 
library as a 
community 
library 



range of interests possessed by individual students. 
In the second class is included such material as is use- 
ful for general reading. This material may be divided 
into two sub-classes. The first sub-class embraces 
general reading matter supplementary to the textbooks, 
affording valuable information and stimulating interest 
in the topics under discussion in the class-room. The 
second subdivision includes reading matter still more 
general in character and has no direct relation to the 
class-room work. Reference has already been made 
to the importance of encouraging a wide range of 
reading on the part of high school students, and the 
means for accomplishing this must be furnished in 
most communities by the library of the high school. 

Selection of material for the use of high school stu- 
dents is a matter of the utmost importance. Too fre- 
quently the material chosen would be excellent for 
the use of college and university students and for spe- 
cialists, but it has little value for the purposes for 
which it is intended. The content in itself is frequently 
beyond the range of the interests of high school stu- 
dents and its organization is equally unsuitable for their 
uses. One of the purposes of the library is to encour- 
age reading on the part of the young people, and an 
intimate knowledge of their interests must function 
in making selections. 

In this general discussion of the purposes and 
functions of the high school library, it appears worth 
while to call attention to what seems to be a mistake 
made by some of the smaller communities. An at- 
tempt is frequently made in these communities to 
establish and maintain an independent library. If 



MATERIAL EQUIPMENT 287 

the same amount of money were spent in establishing 
and maintaining a library in connection with the high 
school, it would serve two very useful purposes. In 
the first place, it would be a more economical method 
of providing for the needs of the community. The 
cost of books and other library material is only one 
of the items of expense. The care and supervision 
of the library is another item which should be taken 
into account. Another advantage in having the library 
in connection with the high school, is that it aids in ren- 
dering the school a center of community interests and 
in making it a center of the activities of the young 
people. 

It is so obvious that laboratory subjects cannot be Laboratory 
successfully taught in the absence of apparatus suffi- e( i ul P ment 
cient in amount and suitable in character that no 
extended discussion of the topic is necessary. The 
theory and the practice of science teaching, however, 
are frequently so widely separated that continued 
emphasis upon the necessity for laboratory equipment 
and material is required. In many schools, work is 
being attempted in science, agriculture, and the manual 
arts without sufficient equipment with which to carry 
it on. When it became the fad and the fashion 
to offer courses in science, the smaller high schools 
undertook to carry on the work with no adequate 
facilities for doing so. Even at the present time, this 
condition still exists in many schools and has been 
rendered more intolerable by the attempt to offer 
courses in the newer laboratory subjects. If it is 
necessary to make the choice between offering several 
laboratory subjects without sufficient equipment and 



288 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

offering one or at most a few subjects under condi- 
tions favorable to successful work, there should be no 
hesitancy in choosing the latter alternative. 
Theinflu- ^he practical viewpoint is controlling more and 

functional more in science teaching, and is exerting an important 
viewpoint influence in the matter of equipment and in the char- 
acter of material used for demonstration and experi- 
mentation. The emphasis now being placed upon the 
content value of the subject and the practical aims 
governing in instruction, require many changes in the 
method of laboratory work. Laboratory work must 
be justified on other than mere disciplinary grounds. 
It is no longer successfully defended even as a means 
of acquiring knowledge for other than practical pur- 
poses. These changes have given a new meaning 
to laboratory work and have brought about corre- 
sponding changes in the criteria employed in selecting 
equipment. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 

The teacher is the most important factor in edu- The impor- 
tance of the 
cation. This is perhaps neither more nor less true of teacher's 

high school teachers than it is of other teachers. But work 

it is equally true of them. Well-defined aims, properly 

selected subject matter, and adequate equipment are 

but means to ends which can be gained only through 

the work of competent teachers. Poor teaching can 

not be compensated for by anything else. A fuller 

recognition of this fact is needed on the part of school 

boards and others who employ teachers and determine 

their salaries and tenure of office. 

Competent teachers can be secured only through Training 
training for their work. Teaching is a specialized 
form of work and calls for a kind of preparation in 
harmony with this fact. It is true that teaching can- 
not be regarded as a profession in this country. Nor 
is there any prospect that it will become such in the 
immediate future. This does not mean, however, 
that teachers should not regard their work as profes- 
sional in character. It calls for special training both 
on the academic and professional sides and no satis- 
factory degree of success can be hoped for in the 
absence of such training. 

Some very practical difficulties stand in the way of 
securing competent teachers. One of these is that 



290 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Teaching 
not per- 
manent 
occupation 



Influence of 
preponder- 
ance of 
women on 
permanent 
supply 



Necessary 
to take 
limitations 
into account 



teaching is not entered upon as a life work by the 
great majority of those who engage in it. Something 
can be accomplished by securing better salaries. The 
economic phase of the question is important. A 
system of pensions for teachers may help some in 
making up for low salaries, but that it will result in 
all the benefits claimed by its advocates is extremely 
doubtful. Better means of determining fitness of 
teachers and an established policy of employing 
teachers, not from year to year but for a period as 
long as satisfactory service is rendered, would result 
in rendering positions more permanent and the work 
of teaching more attractive. 

In any discussion of the permanency of the teacher's 
work, the fact must not be left out of account that 
most high school teachers are women. A permanent 
force of teachers means that men will take the places 
of the women in our high schools. No argument is 
required to sustain this contention. The fact is that 
we cannot expect that any considerable number of 
women will remain permanently in the work of teach- 
ing. The relative merit of men and women teachers 
is not an issue in our discussion. As long as the ma- 
jority of those who enter the work of teaching con- 
tinues to be women, we shall be under the necessity 
of providing facilities for training a number of teachers 
far in excess of what would otherwise be required. 

These facts, which render the teacher-training prob- 
lem a very difficult one, should not deter us from an 
attempt at its solution. But it is necessary to know the 
nature of the problem and the limitations under which 
its solution must be worked out. Under present con- 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 291 

ditions we cannot hope for a body of permanent 
workers, and this incontrovertible fact must be taken 
into account. It is no doubt desirable to strive toward 
the end of securing greater permanence, but there 
are more immediate ends requiring the emphasis of 
attention. 

Taking it for granted that these conditions exist Problem is 
and will continue to exist, the question is, What sort of besttatiaing 
training can be provided that will be most effective? possible in 

-r , . ... , view of 

In answering this question it is necessary to remember limitations 
that the interest which prospective teachers have in 
the matter of their own training is partial and tem- 
porary. They take the work in connection with a 
regular college or university course and feel, it is feared, 
in too many cases, that the chief value of the special 
work consists in the aid it will render in securing a 
position, instead of regarding it as a necessity for 
becoming a successful worker. Whatever their attitude 
may be, the fact still remains that as long as teacher- 
preparation is confined to undergraduate courses, com- 
paratively little time can be given directly to the work. 
A real problem in correlation presents itself concern- 
ing how to secure on the academic side the largest 
amount of preparation possible for teaching high school 
subjects. 

No one, of course, can be expected to teach success- importance 
fully that which he himself does not thoroughly know. jJjJSJJSIJ 
Thorough academic preparation is the first require- 
ment; and how to secure this is the first problem 
presented. Let it be said here, that we are not 
discussing the question of training specialists in par- 
ticular subjects, but rather the training of teachers for 



292 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Familiarity 
with mate- 
rial used in 
high school 
instruction 
and its 
pedagogical 
value 



Teachers 
required 
to teach 
more than 
one subject 



the high school where the specialist's attitudes is not 
desirable. This does not mean that thorough famil- 
iarity with the field in which one attempts to work is 
not essential. It does mean, however, that the mere 
mastery of higher mathematics does not fit one to 
teach secondary mathematics. Nor do courses in 
Chaucer, Tennyson, and Browning, in and of them- 
selves, prepare one to teach high school English. 

A study of higher mathematics, advanced courses 
in English, and in other subjects is an essential part 
of academic training. But a thorough familiarity on 
the part of the teacher with the subject matter which 
is taught in the high school is absolutely necessary. 
A teacher should have an intimate knowledge of the 
pedagogical value of the subject matter employed in 
instruction. To assume that such familiarity with 
the subject matter has been gained through high 
school instruction before entering college or through 
advanced courses taken in the college, is not justified. 
The subject matter should be studied from the point 
of view of teaching it. Opportunity should be offered 
for such study in any institution which attempts to 
prepare teachers for secondary school work. 

In this matter of the academic preparation of teach- 
ers, it must not be lost sight of that in the majority of 
high schools, each teacher is required to teach more 
than one subject. Whether this condition is desirable is 
not the question. There is a demand for teachers who 
are qualified to teach two or more subjects and the 
practical question for institutions which attempt to 
train teachers is how to meet this demand. A teacher 
who can teach two or more subjects with a reasonable 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 293 

degree of success is of far more value to a school than 
a teacher who is fitted to teach but one subject but who 
is required to attempt to teach two or more. It is 
true that specialization in subjects which one attempts 
to teach is highly desirable. But in the presence of 
an actual situation where less specialization in one 
line permits one to secure preparation for the work 
which he will be called upon to do, then less specializa- 
tion and more preparation should be sought. 

Specialization in subjects which one teaches, as Knowledge 
desirable as it is, should not be carried to an extent outside of 
which will prevent a reasonable degree of familiarity J hos ® 
with other fields of knowledge. Some knowledge of 
other fields is necessary as a means of promoting the 
general intelligence of the teacher. A teacher is judged 
by other standards than merely a knowledge of one 
or two subjects included in a curriculum. And the 
efficiency of a teacher in the school and the community 
is determined upon this broader basis. As a further 
reason for this more extended preparation, it may be 
urged that the subjects which one teaches should have 
their proper setting in the whole list of subjects offered 
in the school. The relative value of a subject should 
be thoroughly understood by the teacher, and some 
knowledge of the value of other subjects is a necessary 
part of this understanding. A knowledge of the limi- 
tations of one's subject as well as its possibilities, is 
necessary. One way of securing this is through a 
knowledge of other subjects. The reasons frequently 
set forth why this subject or that one should have 
first place in the curriculum would be less numerous 
and the claims made for its superior value would be 



294 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Teacher's 
value not 
measured 
alone by 
work of 
class-room 



Professional 
training 



Elimination 
necessary 
in field of 
psychology 



less extravagant, if this wider knowledge were more 
common among teachers. 

A teacher's value, as already said, is not measured 
alone by the work done in the class-room. A teacher 
is a member of a group carrying on a common endeavor. 
Each does not, or should not, occupy a closed compart- 
ment, having no knowledge of or any interest in what 
others are doing. Nothing will so much tend to 
secure mutual respect and helpfulness as the recogni- 
tion of the importance of one another's work. A 
teacher, for example, who teaches mathematics but 
has an appreciative knowledge of history and its edu- 
cative value will render more efficient service because 
of this knowledge. 

In a way, we have been discussing the professional 
training of teachers because we have dealt with aca- 
demic work from the point of view of the work of the 
teacher. But to subjects other than the academic ones 
the term professional is more strictly applied. Edu- 
cation — a rather general term, including history, 
principles, methodology, and school management — 
is one of the fields to which our attention is now being 
directed. Psychology, the other field, is in some of 
its aspects very closely allied to education, and it is 
with these allied aspects that we are concerned. We 
shall deal first with psychology as it is related to the 
teacher's work. 

There are certain lines within the general field of 
psychology which are of interest to the special student, 
but which do not concern us here. Experimental 
psychology furnishes an example. It has made very 
important contributions and we shall have to continue 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 295 

to rely upon special workers for the solution of some of 
our educational problems. But we should leave the 
work to them and avail ourselves of the benefits of 
their findings. The time limit, if there were no other 
reason, is sufficient to rule out work in this line except 
of the most meager sort. Abnormal psychology is 
another line that must be left to the special worker. 
There are certain relatively common abnormalities 
in children which should be understood, but nothing 
beyond a knowledge of these should be attempted. 
Further, there are a number of mooted questions that 
are interesting, and important for that matter, but the 
undergraduate student who is preparing to teach can 
employ time more profitably than in an attempt to 
answer them. 

The practical point of view, taking into account the importance 
need of teachers, should govern in determining the ^ona? " 
character of the work. This type of psychology pos- psychology 
sesses a high degree of value in serving as guide in the 
work of the school-room. All teachers have psycholog- 
ical conceptions of their work and it makes a great dif- 
ference whether these conceptions are merely naive 
or whether they are intelligent and employed con- 
sciously in determining the interests and capacities 
of pupils and methods employed in instruction. After 
all, it is not a question whether a teacher has psy- 
chology as a working basis, but rather the kind of 
psychology used. One of the results of a course in 
psychology should be to eradicate misconceptions and 
to render clear and workable ill-defined conceptions 
already held. 

A course in general psychology should have two 



296 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Psychology 
of the 

learning and 
teaching 
processes 



Adolescent 
psychology 



ends in view. First, it should give to the learner 
an opportunity for gaining definite and practical 
information concerning the workings of his own mind. 
The material selected for use in instruction should be 
of such character as to render evident the utility of 
the subject from the point of view of its present value. 
A knowledge of psychology as related to methods of 
study should precede the attempt to learn psychology 
for the purpose of determining methods of teaching. 
The psychology of learning, should precede the 
psychology of teaching. The second aim should be 
determined by the fact that students will be called upon 
to apply their knowledge of psychology to a better 
understanding of the teaching process. Whether we 
apply the term child psychology or educational psy- 
chology to the work is not important. The two 
points of view, however, that of the learner and that 
of the teacher, need to be kept in mind. 

All teachers, whether in the elementary or in the 
high school, need these more general courses in psy- 
chology. In addition, the high school teacher should 
have opportunity for the study of the psychological 
characteristics peculiar to the adolescent period. This 
period is sufficiently differentiated from other life 
periods to render the psychology of it worthy of special 
study. The interests, mental attitudes, limitations, 
and capabilities of adolescence are well marked and 
furnish topics of study very fruitful for the high school 
teacher. The word psychology, in fact, is too limited 
unless we put into it more than the usual content. 
What is required is a study of adolescent life. The 
physical, mental, moral, and ethical aspects must all 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 297 

be taken into account. There is no doubt more or 
less of the fantastic in some of the material dealing 
with adolescent life. Nevertheless there is much very 
thoroughly tested and pedagogically sound material 
to be found. Teachers should avail themselves of this 
in the interest of a better understanding of their 
problem. 

One of the important applications of psychology is Application 
in the field of educational method. Method in the ogy to°edu- 
last analysis is psychologically determined, whatever ca tionai 
may be the type of subject matter used in instruction. 
The criteria even, if properly chosen, for the organiza- 
tion of the subject matter itself, are psychological ones. 
The teacher, in order to perform the very necessary 
task of organizing material, must understand the 
method employed by the learner. In order to perform 
this task satisfactorily, methods of teaching are of 
course determined by methods of learning, and a 
knowledge of psychology alone furnishes the neces- 
sary information for choosing approved methods of 
teaching. 

The principles of education, dealing with both the Principles of 
psychological and social aspects of the problem, fur- psycho- 00 ' 
nish a fruitful field of study for high school teachers. ^ and 

. social 

The importance of the psychological has already been 
indicated. When we add to this the fact that from 
the social side the high school is becoming increasingly 
important in our educational system, we have an 
added reason for emphasizing the importance of the 
training of the teacher. In no other field of education, 
have the duties of the school been so multiplied 
as in the secondary field. As long as the work of 



298 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

the high school was solely or even largely to prepare 
students to enter higher institutions, the social aspect 
of education was comparatively simple. Now all this 
has been changed by the multiplicity of demands made 
upon the high school. If the high school is to edu- 
cate for social efficiency, teachers must know some- 
thing of the nature of the social demands and must 
know how and to what extent these demands deter- 
mine the character of the work done. Teachers must 
have a knowledge of those principles which have their 
genesis in the social process and know how to apply 
them to the problem of secondary education. Suffi- 
cient emphasis was employed in previous chapters in 
regard to the educational significance of social demands 
to render detailed discussion here unnecessary. 
Practical There are certain details of the teacher's work which 

school^ ^ or convenience we include in the general term school 
management management. Assigning lessons, conducting recita- 
tions, supervising study-halls, and dealing with refrac- 
tory pupils constitute the daily round of the teacher's 
work. It is true that not very much can be learned 
concerning these practical and commonplace duties 
except through actual experience. But in spite of 
this, something can be accomplished in the way of 
preparing teachers for these duties through class-room 
instruction. The significance of the duties can at least 
be made clear and a vicarious sort of experience ac- 
quired through practical discussion of the problems 
arising out of the daily employments of the school. 
This sort of instruction lays a foundation for acquiring 
experience at first hand and will be of assistance to 
teachers in avoiding mistakes and will enable them 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 299 

the more quickly and the more confidently to enter 
into the spirit of their work. 

A knowledge of the history of education is so im- Function of 
portant as a background for the study of present edu- ^ ^JJjJS,, 
cational problems, that no course in training should be ™ training 
considered complete which does not include something 
on the historical side. In the first place, a more 
thorough knowledge of the history of education would 
result in more stability in educational progress. Many 
of the fads and fancies which have beset us in educa- 
tional affairs are due to a lack of knowledge that these 
things have been tried and failed. Not only does the 
study of history reveal the mistakes and errors of other 
peoples and other times, but it also makes us aware 
of those means and methods and systems of organiza- 
tion which have permanent value. In the second 
place, a knowledge of history furnishes a historical 
setting for the teacher's work and renders him a sym- 
pathetic participant in general educational endeavor. 
Further than this, it enables one to assume an intelli- 
gent and inquiring attitude toward current educational 
undertakings. At best the work of any school is more 
or less isolated from that of other schools. Anything 
which pushes back the horizon and makes possible 
more general participation in the larger educational 
movements of our generation is valuable. The his- 
tory of education may be made to serve this useful 
purpose. 

The necessity for professional study is by no means Necessity 
limited to those who are preparing to enter upon the ^ u c e ° d n " 
work of teaching. The suggested lines of study will professional 
afford valuable viewpoints from which to regard the 



3°o 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Professional 
training 
secondary 
to personal 
qualities 



Necessary 
qualifica- 
tions de- 
termined in 
the nature 
of the 
teacher's 
work 



work of teaching and furnish a foundation for further 
study. But every teacher must continue to be a 
student of professional literature as long as he engages 
in the work. The knowledge on the professional side 
gained in college will not suffice any more than will the 
knowledge gained on the academic side. Every teacher 
who succeeds continues to be an interested student in 
the field in which he teaches. Successful teachers of 
English, history, science, and the other subjects recog- 
nize this fact. This class of teachers also recognize 
the importance of continued professional study. The 
teacher who leaves off study when the actual work 
of teaching is entered upon thereby gives proof that 
the instruction received during the years of prepara- 
tion largely failed in its purpose. 

The professional training of teachers, as important 
as it is, is secondary in importance to those personal 
qualities without which no teacher can succeed. In 
fact, professional training presupposes these qualities 
and has no significance in their absence. All that 
training can do at best is to develop and refine personal 
qualities and insure their functioning in the work of 
the school. 

These qualities are best appreciated and understood 
in the light of the character of the work which the 
teacher has to do. They are qualities for the most 
part which any person must possess in order to succeed 
in an environment predominantly social. Any worker 
who deals primarily with people must have those quali- 
ties which attract and inspire confidence and gain 
respect. Frankness, honesty, sympathy, and a gen- 
uine interest in the welfare of others are essential alike 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 301 

to the teacher and to all others who work with and for 
people. 

There are things, however, which should be said importance 

6 of right 

concerning the personal qualifications of the high attitude 
school teacher. The adolescent is so sensitive to ^"of* 116 
personal influence and so susceptible to the control teaching 
of a dominating personality that the personal qualities 
of the teacher are of transcendent importance. In 
the first place, a teacher must have the right attitude 
toward the work of teaching. It must be felt, not 
merely in a professional way but in a personal way, 
that teaching is a means through which one may find 
an unusual opportunity for rendering social service. 
Not only is this attitude essential at the beginning 
of one's work but it must continue to persist and to 
dominate throughout one's teaching experience. This 
attitude is not only necessary for the success of the 
work, but it is also essential to the growth and develop- 
ment of the individual. There may be some sort of 
excuse for a person entering upon the work of teach- 
ing, under the stress and strain of circumstances, with 
little appreciation of its significance. In fact, the 
larger meaning of the work comes to us only with 
experience. But for one to remain in the work in the 
absence of the vitalizing and dominating ideal of 
social service is to neglect an important source of 
inspiration and power. Viewed from the standpoint 
of the interests of the school such a course is indefensi- 
ble. If we look at the matter from the personal point 
of view, nothing so devitalizes and dwarfs a teacher's 
life as a lack of appreciation of the social significance 
of his work. 



302 



THE HIGH SCHOOL 



Attitude 

toward 

young 

people even 

more 

important 



Relations 
which 
teachers 
sustain to 
the work of 
the school 
as a whole 



Underlying this attitude toward the work, and sup- 
porting and vitalizing it, is the teacher's attitude toward 
the young people themselves. No teacher can hope 
for anything like real and permanent success in the 
absence of a liking for and interest in young people. 
Genuine sympathy, carrying with it as it always does 
an understanding of their limitations and an apprecia- 
tion of their possibilities, is a fundamental require- 
ment for successful high school teachers. In the 
absence of the ability to enter heartily into the life 
and the spirit of young people, academic preparation 
and professional training are of little avail. The 
moral and ethical aspects of education have little 
meaning if teachers are unable or unwilling to enter 
sympathetically into personal relations with young 
people. Not only is this necessary in the interests of 
pupils, but it is also a great source of inspiration to 
teachers and gains for them a vision of the true sig- 
nificance of their work. 

The relations which teachers sustain to one another 
and to the administration of the school as a whole are 
of great importance. No administrator can secure 
satisfactory results with a mere aggregate of individual 
teachers. It is only when they are in active and sym- 
pathetic cooperation that anything like an educational 
policy can be carried out. An educational policy 
does, or at least should stand for definite educational 
aims. These aims cannot be accomplished by one 
teacher working here and the other there, each inde- 
pendent of the other. They must work all together, 
each being interested in the others and supporting 
the others in a common endeavor to carry out the 



HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS 303 

policy of the school. The real success of each teacher 
is measured by the success of the school as a whole. 
It sometimes happens that a teacher entertains the 
harmful delusion that his own strength is measured 
by another teacher's weakness and his own success 
by another teacher's failure. The real truth is that 
a weak teacher lessens the strength of every other 
teacher in the school. The school room is at least 
one place in the world where the failure of others is 
in a measure our own failure. When teachers coop- 
erate heartily and persistently to build up an efficient 
school, one of the inevitable results is to increase the 
efficiency of every worker who has a part in the com- 
mon endeavor. 

In a very real sense a teacher sustains a two-fold Relations 
relationship to the community. The school is a community 
product of the community and is answerable to it 
for the character of the work which it does. No 
teacher should be indifferent to the responsibility 
assumed in this relation. However we might wish 
a community were different, we must accept it as it 
is and render service in the light not only of what it 
heeds, but of what it will accept. The teacher is a 
public servant and is answerable to the community 
where service is undertaken. These considerations 
should render us patient in tribulation and help us 
to bear patiently with criticisms which seem to us 
unjust and with fault-findings which appear to have 
no warrant. Teachers come and go but communi- 
ties abide and reap the reward of good schools or suffer 
the consequences of poor ones. Teachers, however, 
sustain other than these indirect relations to the com- 



304 THE HIGH SCHOOL 

munity. These other relations are personal and call 
for participation in community life. In some com- 
munities the teacher is rather restricted by its cus- 
toms and traditions. In others, a much larger place 
is accorded and fuller opportunity allowed for becom- 
ing part and parcel of its on-going life. But in greater 
or less degree, participation in the life of a community 
is possible to the teacher and the opportunity should 
be regarded not only as a means of rendering service 
in the community but also as a means of personal 
growth. The teacher's work is more or less isolated 
at best, and every opportunity should be sought to 
widen the horizon and to come into vital contact with 
the daily life of the community. 
Continued These relationships to the community cannot be 
and personal satisfactorily sustained in the absence of continued 
growth professional and personal growth. On the professional 

side it requires vigilance and industry to keep pace 
with the rapidly changing educational ideals and the 
corresponding social demands made upon the school. 
The teacher who has arrived and seeks no advance- 
ment has no promise of success. Life is larger than 
one's work. Means of personal growth as well as 
means of professional advancement should be sought 
by every teacher. In fact there can be no permanent 
advancement professionally in the absence of personal 
growth. But professional advancement is not the 
chief aim of life. It is rather to enlarge and enrich 
personality and to render one's self more efficient in 
all of life's relations. 



APPENDIX 



A few typical high school courses are here presented for study 
and criticism. They represent in general what the larger high 
schools are offering in the way of educational opportunity to 
the young people of their respective communities. They also 
show the various plans of organization of courses of study. 

Asheville, North Carolina, offers two courses, the Latin and 
the Scientific. This plan has prevailed quite generally throughout 
the country, especially in the smaller schools. Frequently other 
names are employed to designate the courses, but the subjects 
offered in either course are practically the same as those included 
in the two courses given below. The practice of thus setting 
ancient language over against science is a survival from the 
early days of the high school. 



Latin Course 


Scientific Course 




First Year 


Arithmetic ^ 


Arithmetic -§• 


Algebra J 


Algebra \ 


English History 


English History 


English 


English 


Latin 


Physical Geography \ 




Civil Government $• 




Second Year 


Algebra 


Algebra 


Ancient History 


Ancient History 


English 


English 


Latin 


Chemistry 




Third Year 


Algebra \ 


Algebra ^ 


Geometry % 


Geometry £- 


English 


English 


Latin 


Physics or Mediaeval History 


German 


or French History 




German 



306 



APPENDIX 



Fourth Year 
Geometry Geometry 

English English 

Latin Physics or U. S. History 

German German 

The Abilene, Kansas, high school offers three courses as shown 
below. The College Preparatory course and the General course 
are fairly representative of what is taught in the majority of 
high schools in towns and cities having populations ranging 
from two thousand to ten thousand. 

The Normal Training course is not representative in the 
same degree. It is peculiar to those states that provide state 
aid for schools maintaining Normal Training courses. Kansas 
and Iowa are examples. Even in these states, a rather small 
minority of the schools are able or willing to meet the require- 
ments. In Iowa, for example, only about one hundred fifty 
high schools out of more than eight hundred offer a Normal 
Training course. 

The requirements in the College Preparatory course are evi- 
dently dictated by the college entrance requirements of the Uni- 
versity. It is not clear what determines the requirements in 
the General course. 



College 




Normal 


Preparatory 


General 
Freshman 


Training 


Required x 


Required 


Required 


English I 


English I 


English I 


Algebra I 


Algebra I 


Algebra I 


Latin I 






Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


General Science i, '. 


1 General Science 1, 2 


General Science 1, 2 


Physiography i, 2 


Physiography 1, 2 


Physiography 1, 2 


Bookkeeping 1 


Bookkeeping 1 


Bookkeeping 1 


Commercial Geog- 


Commercial Geog- 


Commercial Geog- 


raphy 2 


raphy 2 


raphy 2 


Word Study 1 


Word Study 1 


Word Study 1 


1 Arabic figures 


show half year subjects 


5 and term offered. 



APPENDIX 



307 



Required 1 

English II 

Geometry I 

Latin II 
Elective 

Ancient History 

Botany 

Agriculture 

Manual Training 

Domestic Science 

German I 



Required 
English III 
Algebra II, 1 
Latin III 

Elective 

Psychology 2 
Civics 2 

English History 1 
Chemistry 
German II 
Geometry II, 2 



Sophomore 

Required 
English II 
Geometry I 

Elective 
Ancient History 
Botany 
Agriculture 
Manual Training 
Domestic Science 
German I 

Junior 

Required 
English III 



Elective 

Psychology 2 
Civics 2 

English History 1 
Chemistry 
German II 
Geometry II, 2 



Required 

English II 

Geometry I 

Agriculture 
Elective 

Ancient History 

Botany 

Manual Training 
Domestic Science 
German I 



Required 

English III 

Civics 2 

Psychology 2 

Physiology 1 
Elective 



English History 1 
Chemistry 
German II 
Geometry II, 2 



Elective 
Latin IV 

American History 
Economics 
English IV 
Physics 
German III 



Senior 
Elective 

American History 
Economics 
English IV 
Physics 
German III 



Required 

American History 
Normal Reviews 
Arithmetic 1 
Physics 
Methods 2 



The courses offered in the Twin Falls, Idaho, high school 
afford an interesting example of the wide range of subjects now 
being provided by the larger schools. The plan of grouping 



Arabic figures show half year subjects and terms offered. 



3 o8 



APPENDIX 



subjects in the various courses is coming into quite general use. 
Two general groups of courses are recognized, Preparatory and 
Vocational. In the first group are included the Classical and 
Scientific courses. The Vocational courses include Home Eco- 
nomics, Manual Arts, Agricultural, and Commercial. 



Preparatory Courses 


Vocational 






Home Economics 


Classical Course 


Scientific Course 
First Year 


Course 


Required 


Required 


Required 


English 


English 


English 


Algebra 


Algebra 


Elementary Cook- 


Latin 


Physical Geogra- 


ing | 




phy h 


Cleaning ■§■ 




Commercial Geogra 


- Handwork § 




phy i 


Physiology and Hy- 
giene f 


Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


Ancient History 


Latin 


Algebra 


Physical Geography 


German 


Physical Geography 


Commercial Geogra- 


- Ancient History 


Commercial Geogra- 


phy 


Manual Training 


phy 




Domestic Science 


Ancient History 
German 




Second Year 




Required 


Required 


Required 


English 


English 


English 


Plane Geometry 


Plane Geometry 


Plain Sewing % 


Caesar and Compo- 


Botany 


Designing £ 


sition 




Bookkeeping § 
Manual Training -fa 
Poultry \ 
Gardening y-g- 


Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


Mediaeval and Mod- 


- Latin 


Plane Geometry 


ern History 


German 


Botany 


Botany 


Mediaeval and Mod 


- Mediaeval and Mod- 




era History 


ern History 




Manual Training 


German 




Domestic Science 







APPENDIX 


309 




Third Year 




Required 
English 

Advanced Algebra \ 
Solid Geometry ^ 
Cicero and Compo- 


Required 
English 

Advanced Algebra \ 
Solid Geometry \ 
Chemistry 


Required 
English 

Advanced Cookery £ 
Dietetics §■ 
Chemistry 


sition 






Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


German 


German 


Commercial Law 4 


French 
Argumentation anc 

Debate \ 
Public Speaking -j 
English History 


French Political Economy \ 
English History Argumentation and 
Argumentation and Debate \ 

Debate \ Public Speaking \ 
Public Speaking \ English History 

German or French 




Fourth Year 




Required 
English | 
American History 
and Civics 


Required 
English | 
American History 
and Civics 


Required 
English | 
American History 
and Civics 


Vocational Direc- 


Vocational Direc- 


Vocational Direc- 


tion f 
Vergil and Mythol- 
ogy 
Elective 


tion f 
Physics 

Elective 


tion § 
Dressmaking f 
Millinery § 
Elective 


German 
French 

Trigonometry \ 
Political Economy \ 
Psychology ^ 
Principles of Teach- 


French 

Trigonometry \ 
Political Economy \ 
Psychology \ 
Principles of Teach 
ingi 


Physics 
Psychology 
Home Sanitation ■£$ 
House Planning y^j- 
- French 


ing i 






Physics 

Vocational Courses — (Continued) 


Manual Arts 


Agricultural 
First Year 


Commercial 


Required 
English 

Commercial Arith- 
metic 


Required 
English 

Physical Geogra- 
phy i 


Required 
English 

Physical Geogra- 
phy § 



3io 


APPENDIX 

First Year 




Required 


Required 


Required 


Mechanical Draw- 


Commercial Geog- 


Commercial Geog- 


ing i 


raphy 5- 


raphy J 


Manual Training £ 


Agriculture j-$ 


Spelling and Word 




Soils 1% 


Analysis -3- 




Breeds of Live- 


Spelling and Pen- 




stock f 


manship -|- 


Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


Algebra 


Algebra 


Algebra 


Physical Geogra- 


Commercial Arith- 


Ancient History 


phy i 


metic 


German 


Commercial Geogra- 


Manual Training 




phy h 


Domestic Science 




Ancient History 






German 


Second Year 




Required 


Required 


Required 


English 


English 


English 


Mechanical Draw- 


Botany 


Bookkeeping and 


ing f 


Stock Judging f 


Business Practice 


Manual Training f 


Fertilizers ^ 


Commercial Arith- 




Grain Judging T V 


metic 




Poultry T \ 






Gardening -j^ 




Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


Plane Geometry 


Plane Geometry 


Plane Geometry 


Botany 


Bookkeeping 


Mediaeval and Mod- 


Bookkeeping 


Manual Training 


ern History 


Mediaeval and 


Domestic Science 


German 


Modern History 






German 


Third Year 




Required 


Required 


Required 


English 


English 


English 


Designing and 


Farm Dairying £ 


Bookkeeping and 


Drafting f 


Farm Crops f 


Banking 


Manual Training f 


Irrigation £ 
Horticulture f 
Farm Machinery 3- 







APPENDIX 


3ii 




Third Year 




Elective ] 


Elective Elective 


Advanced Algebra % 


Chemistry 


Argumentation and 


Solid Geometry ■% 


Commercial Law \ 


Debate \ 


Chemistry 


Political Economy \ 


Public Speaking \ 


Commercial Law ^ 


Argumentation and 


Commercial Law \ 


Political Economy \ 


Debate \ 


Political Economy \ 


Argumentation and 


Public Speaking \ 


Stenography 


Debate \ 


Manual Training 


Typewriting 


Public Speaking \ 


Domestic Science 


German or French 


German or French 


Fourth Year 




Required 


Required Required 


English | 


English f 


English | 


American History 


American History 


American History 


and Civics 


and Civics 


and Civics 


Vocational Direc- 


Vocational Direc- 


Vocational Direc- 


tion § 


tion | 


tion f 


Architectural Draft- 


Feeds and Feeding 




ing I 


3 

TO 




Manual Training § 


Farm Management 

Insect Pests y% 
Fungous Diseases y 2 ^ 
Farm Law yg- 




Elective 


Elective 


Elective 


Trigonometry \ 


Physics 


Physics or Chemistry 


Agriculture \ 


Breeding y^j- 


History of Com- 


Physics 


Farm Surveying y 2 o 


merce \ 


French 


Marketing Farm 


Advertising and 




Products yV 


Salesmanship \ 




Manual Training 


Stenography 




Domestic Science 


Typewriting 
French 



Physical Culture twice a week throughout the year is required of 
all Freshmen and Sophomores. Others may elect it. Vocational 
Direction, one hour per week throughout the year, required of all 
Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors. 



312 APPENDIX 

The Boise, Idaho, high school does not offer quite so wide a 
range of subjects as does the Twin Falls school, but the essential 
difference is in the administration. The Boise school provides 
the free elective system and students select their work under 
the direction of teachers. The following statement found in the 
published course of study indicates the plan, "Students are 
aided in selecting a unified course in accordance with their 
needs." 

Course of Study 





Required 




English (3 years) 




6 units 1 






Elective 






Units 




Unil 


English 


2 


German 


6 


History 


6 


Manual Training 


8 


Mathematics 


6 


Mechanical Drawing 


6 


Biology 


4 


Domestic Economy 


10 


Agriculture 


10 


Art 


6 


Physics 


2 


Music 


4 


Chemistry 


2 


Expression 


4 


Latin 


8 


Commercial 


18 


French 


6 







An exception to this plan is made in Boise by providing a 
three-year Commercial course. It will be observed, however, 
that the free elective plan provides for eighteen units of com- 
mercial work. 

A few high schools provide courses for girls differing from those 
for boys and so designate the course. Jacksonville, Florida, and 
Springfield, Massachusetts, are examples. In the last analysis 
this means little more than a different method of administration 
from that employed in either Twin Falls or Boise. But the plan 
is interesting as evidence of the rapidly growing conviction that 
educational opportunities for girls should differ in essential par- 
ticulars from those provided for boys. 

The courses offered by the Jacksonville school are the 
following: 

1 A unit is one-half year of work. 



APPENDIX 



3i3 



(English and History) 

Required for Girls 

Years Units 



Unit 
4 



Course A 
Required for Boys 

Years 

English 4 

Mathematics, including 
.Algebra completed, 
Plane Geometry, 5 

Books 3 3 

History and Civics (An- 
cient, Mediaeval, and 
Modern, English, 

American, and Civil 

Government) 4 4 

Electives 5 5 

Electkes 
Physical Geography. . . 1 1 

Bookkeeping 1 1 

Mechanical Drawing 
and Freehand Sketch- 
ing 4 4 

French or German .... 2 2 

Physics 1 1 

Solid Geometry and 

Plane Trigonometry. 1 1 
If Language or Drawing are elected they must be taken two years 
each. 

Course B 
Required for Boys 

Years Units 



English 4 

Mathematics, Algebra 
(Elementary) com- 
pleted, Plane Geom- 
etry, 2 Books 2 

History (Ancient, Me- 
diaeval, Modern, 
English, American, 
and Civil Govern- 
ment) 4 

French or German ... 2 

Elective 4 

Electives 

Physical Geography . . 1 

Physics 1 

Plane Geometry 1 

Domestic Arts (Cut- 
ting, Sewing, Milli- 
nery, etc.) 2 

Domestic Science 

(Cooking) 2 



English 4 4 

Mathematics, including 

Algebra completed, 

Plane Geometry, 5 

Books 3 3 

French or German .... 2 2 

Physics 1 1 

Chemistry 1 1 

Physical Geography. . . 1 1 

Electives 4 4 



(Science) 

Required for Girls 

Years Units 

English 4 4 

Mathematics, includ- 
ing Algebra com- 
pleted. Plane Geom- 
etry. 2 Books 2 2 

Physical Geography . . 1 1 

French or German ... 3 3 

Chemistry 1 1 

Botany or Zoology . . . . 1 1 

Electives 4 4 



314 



APPENDIX 

Course B (Science) — (Continued) 



Electives 




Electives 




Years Units 


Years Units 


Mechanical Drawing 




Domestic Art (Cut- 




and Freehand Sketch- 




ting, Sewing, Mil- 




ing 4 


4 


linery, etc.) 2 


2 


Latin 4 


4 


Domestic Science 




Botany and Zoology. . . 1 


1 


(Cooking) 2 


2 


Solid Geometry, Plane 




Latin 4 


4 


Trigonometry 1 


1 


Physics 1 


1 


If Latin or Drawing 




If Latin is elected it 




are elected they must be 




must be taken for two 




taken two years each. 




years. 




Optional: Surveying, 








Electricity. 








Course C 


(College Preparatory) 




Required for Boys 




Required for Girls 




Years Units 


Years Units 


English 4 


4 


English 4 


4 



Mathematics, including 
Algebra completed, 
Plane Geometry com- 
pleted 3 

History (Ancient, Me- 
diaeval and Modern) 2 

Latin 4 

French or German .... 2 
Elective 1 

Electives 

Physics 1 

Solid Geometry, Plane 
Trigonometry 1 



Mathematics, includ- 
ing Algebra com- 
pleted, Plane Geom- 

3 etry, 2 Books 2 2 

Latin 4 4 

2 French or German ... 2 2 

4 History (Ancient, Me- 

2 diaeval and Modern) 2 2 
1 Electives 2 2 

Electives 
1 American History and 

Civil Government. . .1 1 
1 Domestic Art (Cut- 
ting, Sewing, Mil- 
linery, etc.) 2 2 

Domestic Science 

(Cooking) 2 2 

Physics 1 1 

Solid Geometry, Plane 

Trigonometry 1 1 



A 


Witt 


sTDIX 


315 


Course D General 




Course D 
Household Arts 




Required for Boys 




Required for Girls 




Years Units 


Years Units 


English 4 


4 


English 4 


4 


Mathematics, including 




Mathematics, Algebra 




Algebra completed, 




(Elementary) com- 




Plane Geometry, 5 




pleted 2 


2 


Books 3 


3 


Domestic Arts (Cut- 




Drawing (Mechanical) . 2 


2 


ting, Sewing, Milli- 




Applied Mathematics . . 1 


1 


nery, etc., 2 


2 


Commercial Arithmetic 




History (Ancient, Me- 




and Bookkeeping 1 


1 


diaeval, Modern) . . 2 


2 


Physics 1 


1 


French or German ... 2 


2 


French or German .... 2 


2 


Elective 2 


2 


Elective 2 


2 







Electives 
American History and 

Civil Government . . 1 
Solid Geometry and 

Plane Trigonometry. 1 
Latin 2 



Electives 
American History and 

Civil Government. . 1 1 

Latin 2 2 

Bookkeeping 1 1 

Plane Geometry 1 1 

English History 1 1 



The Fitchburg, Massachusetts, high school offers five courses, 
designated as College Preparatory, Technology Preparatory, 
General, Cooperative Commercial, and Cooperative Industrial. 
Only the last two are of particular interest. They represent a 
general movement now going on in commercial and industrial 
centers to meet the demands for special types of education. 



Cooperative Commercial Course 

First Year 

Business English and Spelling 5 

Writing (one-half course) 5 

Typewriting 4 

Commercial Arithmetic and Business Forms 5 

French, Spanish, German, Elementary Science, Ancient History, 

or Domestic Science 5 



316 APPENDIX 

Cooperative Commercial Course — (Continued) 
Second Year 

English and Business Correspondence 5 

Bookkeeping (one-half course) 5 

Stenography 5 

Typewriting 5 

Writing (one-half course) 4 

French, Spanish, German, Physics, or Mediaeval History 5 

Third Year 

English 4 

Bookkeeping (one-half course) 5 

Typewriting and Stenography 10 

Commercial Law, Geography, and Industrial History 5 

Public Speaking 1 

French, Spanish, German, Chemistry, or English History 5 

Fourth Year 

English 4 

Civics 5 

Stenography and Typewriting 10 

Salesmanship and Bookkeeping 5 

Electives (one must be taken) — French, German, Biology, 

Spanish, Drawing, Chemistry 5 

" All the Senior pupils who desire experience in an office or store 

and have successfully completed the subjects of the course for the 
first three years, will have positions secured for them. Arrangements 
will be made so that as far as possible the more advanced pupils 
may secure work and experience during the summer vacation." 

Cooperative Industrial Course 

First Year 
All School Work: 

English 4 

Arithmetic, tables and simple shop problems 5 

Civics and American History 4 

Algebra 5 

Freehand and Mechanical Drawing and Bench Work 10 



APPENDIX 317 

Cooperative Industrial Course — (Continued) 

Second Year 
School and Shop Work: 

English 5 

Shop Mathematics, Algebra and Geometry 5 

Physics 4 

Industrial History and Commercial Geography 5 

Mechanism of Machines 5 

Freehand and Mechanical Drawing 5 

Third Year 
School and Shop Work: 

English 5 

Shop Mathematics 5 

Chemistry 4 

Physics 4 

Mechanism of Machines (one-half year) 4 

Business Methods (one-half year) 4 

First Aid to Injured 1 

Freehand and Mechanical Drawing 6 

Fourth Year 
School and Shop Work: 

English 5 

Economics 5 

Mechanism of Machines, Jig Design, and Mathematics 5 

Physics, Electricity, and Heat 4 

Chemistry 6 

Freehand and Mechanical Drawing 4 

"This course, patterned after that of the University of Cincinnati, 
is a form of an apprenticeship system, whereby boys receive instruc- 
tion in the shop during one week, and instruction in the school the 
next week. The course is of four years duration. The first year is 
spent wholly in the school, and during the other three years the boys 
alternate weekly between school and shop. Any boy who is regularly 
admitted to the high school may, with the approval of his parents, 
elect this course. 

" The manufacturers take the boys in pairs, so that by alternating 
they have at all times one of the pair at work. Each Saturday at 
n o'clock the boy who has been at school that week goes to the 
shop and learns on what particular job his alternate has been work- 



318 APPENDIX 

ing and how it has been handled in order that the work may be taken 
up without delay the next Monday morning. 

"Shop work consists of instruction in the operation of lathes, 
planers, drilling machines, bench and floor work, and such other 
machine work according to the ability of the apprentice, as pertains 
to the particular branch of manufacture of the shop where the boy 
is employed. 

" The boys receive compensation for their services during the week 
they are in the shop. The wage scale becomes operative the first 
day of July, when the boys enter upon a trial period of two months. 
All of the class begin work at this time, reserving a few weeks for 
vacation in July or August. Division into pairs is made at the open- 
ing of the fall term in September." 



INDEX 



Adolescents 

home provides inadequate 
social environment, 57 

interests, 31 

leisure occupation, 46 

play impulses, 45 

social interests, 56, 104, 236 

vocational interests, 31 
Agriculture, 184 

emphasis on practical aspects, 

187 
social demands require teach- 
ing, 185 
social significance, 185 
values in teaching, 184 
Algebra 

unsatisfactory status, 170 
Ancient languages 

contributions to our language 

made by, 165 
disciplinary and cultural 

values, 164 
limitations upon study, 164 
use of translations, 167 
Arithmetic, 169 
Art, 189, 191-2 
Athletics 

place and function, 200 
results of upon school work, 
197 
Attendance 

girls constitute majority, 3 
increase in high school, 1 
influence of vocational in- 
terests upon, 31 



Bookkeeping, 182-3 
Buildings, 276 
uses, 282 

Citizenship 

new demands upon, 6 

new meaning, 60 

new spirit, 59 

preparation for, 58 
Civics, 119 

standpoints for selection of 
material, n 9-1 2 2 
College 

causes of lack of coordina- 
tion of work of high school 
and, 68, 71 

changes needed in entrance 
requirements, 76 

difference in social life of high 
school and, 73 

fitness for entrance, 70 

high schools prepare for, 66 

mutual interests of high school 
and, 66 

new criteria for judging work 
of high school, 77 
Commercial subjects, 180 

aims in instruction, 182 

limited instruction, 181 
Courses of study, 305-17 
Curriculum 

cause of confusion in organi- 
zation, 98 

changes demanded in subject 
matter, 102 



320 



INDEX 



college entrance requirements 

should not determine, 208 
importance, 88 

influences of "formal disci- 
pline," 97 
influence of social demands in 

determining, 94 
no ideal, 204 
origins of present, 91-3 
organization, 203 
problem in small schools, 207 
proper criteria in revaluation, 

90 
reconstruction, 90 
required subjects constitute 

chief values, 98 
selection and organization, 89 
social studies included, 111- 

119 
subjects and subject matter 

constituting, 95 
subject matter determines 

real value, 100 
tendency to undervalue, 88 
value of subject determined 

by position, 99 
what should be revealed by 

organization, 96 

Economics, 117 

standpoints for selection of 
material, 11 7-1 19 

Education 

complex aim, 17 
definitions, 12, 13, 18 
demands for higher, 66 
health of girls and, 81 
home-keeping as related to, 

83 

moral, 194 

objections to vocational con- 
sidered, 34 



physical, 197 

physical aspects, 23 

relation to social evil, 27 

society demands vocational, 37 

vocational furnishes contact 
between home and school, 
36 
English, 141 

aims in teaching, 150-2 

content values, 146 

correlation of other work with, 
1S6 

emphasis upon oral composi- 
tion in instruction, 154 

influence of "formal disci- 
pline," 142 

influence of higher institu- 
tions, 143 

place of in curriculum, 141, 

social environment furnished, 

145 
Environment 

social, 232 
Equipment, 274 

Foreign languages, 158 

disciplinary influence, 159 
important place occupied by, 

158 
increasing importance of mod- 
ern, 160 
limitations upon study, 164 
modern, 160 

standpoints for the selection 
of material, 16 1-3 

Geometry 

larger place given to, 170 
Girls 

education, 78 

duty of high school in educa- 
tion of, 78 



INDEX 



321 



mental attitudes, 80 

needs and interests, 3, 22, 80 

physical needs, 81 

readjustments demanded in 
education, 86 

reasons for neglect in educa- 
tion, 78 
Government, 255 

adolescent characteristics in 
relation to, 260 

aims, 261 

forms, 262-3 

interests of pupils relating to, 
266 

meaning of self-government, 
264 

nature of problem, 255-9 

spirit, 268 
Grounds, 280 

uses, 282 
Gymnasium, 278 

Health 

school should educate for, 
24-6 
High school 

causes for failure to make 

readjustments in, 9-10 
causes of growth, 2 
classes participating in, 2 
community demands, 15-16 
criteria for determining de- 
mands, 17 
demands for readjustments, 2 
duty of in preparation for 

leisure occupation, 51-2 
function, 14 
government, 255 
interests of adolescents in 

relation to work, 31-2 
objections to special type, 
40-42 



points of view from which to 
regard work, 19-21 

rapid growth, 1 

relation of social changes, 9 

relation of socializing organi- 
zations of to curriculum, 
221 

sex instruction, 27-8 

social character, 219 

social demands not to inter- 
fere with chief duty, 105 

social forces product of, 65 

social organization, 219-221 

socializing function, 220 
History, 113 

importance of environment 
furnished by study, 113 

standpoints from which to 
select material, 114-116 
Home 

changes in, 7 

problems arising out of 
changes, 62 

school taking over functions 
previously performed by, 63 

social character of problems, 
64 
Household art, 173-5 

Industry 

changes in, 4-6 
Instruction 

individual and class, 230 

Leisure time 

employment, 44 

demands for guidance in 

employment, 47, 237 
more being provided for 
workers, 53 
Library, 285 

use by community, 286 



322 



INDEX 



Manual arts, 175-180 

Mathematics, 167 

content values, 169 
disciplinary value, 168 
less attention being given to, 
171 

Moral instruction 
demand, 195 
sources of material, 194-5 

Music, 189, 191 

Organizations 

direction and control, 250-3 
educative policy related to, 

241 
Greek letter, 237 
relation of teachers, 241 
school to provide for social, 

239-242 
standardization of member- 
ship, 243-249 

Physical education 

sources of material, 199 

three-fold aim, 198 

unfortunate beginnings, 196 
Pupils 

segregation of, 234 

Recitation 

conducting, 228 
preparation, 228 



standpoints for selection of 
material, 129 

unsatisfactory results in teach- 
ing, 125-6 

vocational interests and in- 
struction, 135 
Society 

changes in, 4 
Studies 

elective, 212, 213, 216 

required, 212-5 
Subject matter 

changes needed, 102 

content value, 107 

criteria for selection, 103, 
106, 107 

importance of organization, 
108 

lack of proper organization, 
109-10 

mind of learner to determine 
type of organization, 108 

Teachers 

academic preparation, 292-3 
personal qualities, 300-302 
professional growth, 299-304 
professional training, 294-9 
relation to community, 303 
training, 289-91 

Textbooks 

needed revisions, 283 



Science, 125 

emphasis on practical in 
science instruction, 138 

importance of knowledge of, 
125 

influence of disciplinary con- 
ception, 127 

need of reorganization in 
material, 139 



Women 

new social demands upon, $s 

social participation as related 

to personal development, 84 

training in civic efficiency, 

84-5 

Youth 

employing leisure time, 44 



: 



1 



